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Copyright )^^ 

COPYRIGHT DEPOSrr. 



THE STORY OF THE EMPIRE STATE 




Peter Stuyvesant tore the letter to pieces and stamped 
upon it. 

(See page 43.) 



THE STORY OF 

THE EMPIRE STATE 



HISTORY OF NE[V YORK 
TOLD IN STORY FORM 



A SUPPLEMENTARY READING-BOOK FOR 
GRAMMAR GRADES 

V 

BY 

GERTRUDE VAN DUYN SOUTHWORTH 



NEW YORK 

D. APPLETON AND COMPANY 

1902 



4RY Of 

Hkcsivhd 

W t902 

.-VPIOHT ENTffV 

Ct*SS'C^XXa No. 



Copyright, 1902 
By D. APPLETON AND COMPANY 



.PnljUnhitJ'Oi'jiiMt i'.rjtti 



DEDICATED 

TO 

MARCIA SHANKLAND ANDREWS 



PREFACE 



The following pages have been written for 
the boys and girls of the Empire State, and for 
all others who are interested in the fascinating 
story of New York from its early history to the 
beginning of the twentieth century. 

Only important points have been dealt with, 
and only those events have been chosen which 
are historically correct. 

Innumerable incidents have been introduced 
in an effort to make the narrative of facts 
more pleasant reading. 

The whole has been woven into a connected 
story, and surely no more interesting material 
for a narrative can be found than in the history 
in which New York is so rich. 

Gertrude Soijthworth. 

vii 



CONTENTS 



PAGE 
CHAPTER -. 

I. The People of the Long House . . . • a 

14 
II.— Henry Hudson. . . • • • • • ^"^ 

III.— Beginnings of New Netherlands .... 21 

IV.— Peter Stuyvesant and the Dutch colonists . 29 

V—New Netherlands under English rule . . 45 

4Q 
VI.— Colonial difficulties 

VII.— Some English governors and Jacob Leisler . 55 
.VIII.— Colonial life in the early part of the eight- 
eenth CENTURY 

70 
IX.— The NEGRO plot " 

X.— The French and Indian War .... 74 

XL— A trip THROUGH THE COLONY IN 1765 ... 82 

XIL— The Stamp Act 88 

XIII. Taxation and colonial opposition ... 95 

XIV.— Happenings in New York at the beginning of 

the Revolution 102 

XV. Campaign in the vicinity of New York . . 109 

XVI. — Burgoyne's campaign 118 

XVII. — Indian massacres 1^^ 

XVIII. — Benedict Arnold 1'^' 

XIX.— Close of the Revolution and the beginning of 

THE republic ^^^ 

XX.— New York after the Revolution . . .156 

ix 



X THE STORY OF THE EMPIRE STATE 

CHAPTER PAGE 

XXI.— The War of 1812 171 

XXII.— TuE Erie Canal .179 

XXIIL— The civil war 183 

XXIV. — Some developments during the nineteenth cen- 
tury 191 

XXV.— The Spanish War 201 

XXVI, — In conclusion 205 



THE STORY OF THE EMPIRE STATE 



CHAPTER I 

THE PEOPLE OF THE LONG HOUSE 

Ijst the year 1600 no white men were living 
in the central part of what is now the Empire 
State. At that time this land was occupied by 
five tribes of Indians — the Mohawks, the Onei- 
das, the Onondagas, the Cayugas, and the Sene- 
cas. For many, many years these tribes had 
been at war with one another, and had been 
constantly battling with other Indian nations. 
As a result, the five tribes became so weakened 
that each began to realize that greater strength 
and fewer enemies were necessary for its pres- 
ervation. But how was this to be accom- 
plished ? About one hundred and fifty years 
before the beginning of the seventeenth cen- 
tury, according to an Indian legend, Hiawatha, 
an Onondaga Indian, invited the members of 
these five tribes to meet at a great council and 
hear a plan he had to propose. 

1 



THE STORY OF THE EMPIRE STATE 



He is supposed to have addressed tlieiii 
somewhat as follows : " Friends and Brothers : 
Each of the tribes represented here has been 
trying to defend itself, not only against the 
other four nations invited to this council, but 
also against a great and strong tribe \\ hich sur- 
rounds us on every side. The Algonquins are 
our common enemy. Alone, no 
one of the nations of which you 
are the h(iii(>re(l members can hope 
to succeed long ^^ itli such a foe. 
If we continue as we are now do- 
ins;, five noble Indian tribes will 
be wi})ed out of existence. But 
suppose the five tribes here assem- 
bled should smoke the pipe of 
peace; should swear to ])rotect 
one another ; to become, in fact, 
one nation. AVould that nation 
not be stronger than the hated 
Algonquins ? Would not safety 
lie in that union ? Brothers, this 
is my plan : Let the tribes here 
represented become one family and be known 
as the ' Five Nations.' " 

History does not tell whether Hiawatha's 
words of council brought about a union of 
these nations, but soon after his legendary ad- 




Cahimot 
or peact'-])ii)(>. 



THE PEOPLE OP THE LONG HOUSE 3 

dress the five tribes formed themselves into the 
Iroquois Confederacy. 

In theii' wild life the Indians had roved 
over many miles of land outside of what is 



Long house of the Iroquois. 

now New York State, and they still continued 
to do so. They did, however, choose the Mo- 
hawk Valley as the headquarters of the Five 
Nations. Here they built their houses out of 
logs and bark. Each house was about one 
hundred feet long and fifteen or twenty feet 
wide. There was a door at either end, and the 
space along the sides was divided into a num- 
ber of stall -like rooms. In each of these rooms 
lived a family. Sometimes there were twenty 
or more families in one house. Down the mid- 
dle of the passage between the two rows of 
rooms were several fire-pits where the cooking 
was done, the smoke escaping through holes in 
the roof. The food, and in fact ever}' thing the 
families had, with the exception of weapons 
and ornaments, was common property and 



4 THE STORY OF THE EMPIRE STATE 

c()iil<l be used by auy one liviug iu the house. 
The ludiaiis called their crude buildings " Long 
Houses," to distinguish them from the mere 
huts and wigwams of other tribes. 

AVhile the Five Nations were establishing 
themselves along the Mohawk it dawned upon 

them that their 
fie: head quarters were 

laid out some- 
wliat after the 
jtlan of their Long 
Houses. Conse- 
(juently they be- 
gan speaking of 
the land they oc- 
cupied in the 
terms they used 
for their houses. 
The M o h a w k 
tribe, settling farthest east, was called the 
"Keepers of the Eastern Door"; the Senecas, 
at the west end of their tract of land, were the 
"Keepers of the Western Door"; the Onon- 
dagas, half- way between, were the " Tenders of 
the Central Fire"; and the Five Nations be- 
came the People of the Long House. 

The first great chief of the Confederacy ^^ as 
chosen from the Onondagas. His name was 




Indian manner of broiling in 1585. 



THE PEOPLE OB" THE LONG HOUSE 5 

Atotarlio. The story goes that at the time he 
was chosen chief he was living alone in a 
swamp, where his cnjjs and dishes wei"e made 
of the skulls of his slain enemies. 

Having agreed to live in peace with one 
another, the Five Nations did all they could to 
keep this part of their con- 
tract. If by accident, or 
otherwise, an Indian of one 
tribe killed a mem- 
ber of another, the 
chiefs of the neu- 
tral tribes me 




Map of Iroquois land. 



promptly and tried to prevent the injured 
nation from sending out an avenger. If they 
were successful, the slayer confessed to the 
friends of his victim, asked their pardon, and 
gave them one hundred yards of white wam- 
pum as a peace offering providing the person 



THE STORY OF THE EMPIRE STATE 




Iiuliau's trap. 



killed were a man. If a woman were slain, 

two liiiiidi'ed yards were given. 

When the Indians of those days were not 

on the \var-path they speut their time hunt- 
ing, hshiiig, and in build- 
ing their homes. They 
made moccasins of 
deerskin, ai'nioi- of 
twigs and hides, and 
baskets and canoes of 
bark. Having no tish- 
hooks, such as are used 

to-day, their fisli \vere caught by shooting them 

with an arro\\ or on hooks of bone. They 

made simple tra})s for 

catcliing bear and 

other game. During 

the sununer fish and 

game \vei-e plentiful, 

but in the winter it 

was more w^ork tlian 

[)lay to kee]) a large 

family su])plied \Nith 

these necessities. 

The women worked in the tields, besides 

busying themselves Avith the pleasanter occu- 
pations of making fur garments for Avinter 

and caring for their children. They were 




Caiiirlit in an Indian trap. 



THE PEOPLE OP THE LONG HOUSE 7 

honored and respected and had a voice iu the 
council. 

Every able-bodied man was a warrior. If 
any showed fear in battle he was forever dis- 
graced. A warrior cut his hail* short except 
on the very top of his head where he allowed 
it to grow long. This long hair was called 



-" m:-.;A.A^:,..,.w.,,...,,...;!.o..4i!..,,.-,..Jlflii„-i....,f .J . -., V.,. ,>.-.,. ..,.1...'. , , ,,,,, 



-- ■ — _ -«>- 

An Indian canoe. 



a " scal2>lock." The '^ handle of hair " thus 
remaining was a challenge to the enemy to 
kill if possible, as it was always cut off with 
the surrounding scalp to show the victor's 
comrades the number of the enemy he had 
slain. The warrior who returned to camp 
with the greatest number of these trophies 
hana-ins: from his belt was considered the 
" bravest of the braves." 

Oftentimes the Indians built huge Ijon- 
fires, and calling all the tribe together, had 
very noisy and merry dances. The young 
Indians had contests to test their endurance, 
and occasionally one of their number would 
keep dancing round and round the fire until 
he dropped from exhaustion. 



8 THE STOKY OF THE EMPIRE STATE 

These early iuliabituuts of our State were 
very superstitiou.s auil believed many strange 
tilings. The}' had great fear of witches, and 
believed a witch had the power to turn into a 
fox and run swiftly away from her pursuer, 
or into an ow 1 so as to lly out of harm's way. 
They even thought a witch could turn at will 
into a loc or stone which an enemy could not 
tell from other logs or stones, and thus the 
witch would escape injury. Then, too, the 
People of the Long Hcmse believed in the 
Pygmies, who \vere supposed to be little [)eo- 
])le from the far north where it was so cold 
that they could not glow. These Pvgmies 
were very good to human beings, and warned 
them against the Great Buffaloes. The Great 
Buffaloes were huge monsters lixing under the 
ground, but appearing suddenly and devouring 
all the j)eople of a settlement unless the Pyg- 
mies found out their intentions in time to send 
warning. 

Heaven, to the Indian, meant a happy 
hunting-ground where he could find all the 
game he liked best, where the sun shone and 
clear streams flowed, and where he would 
always be warm and have ])lenty to eat. 
An Tndian was buried with his weapons and 
trinkets and with enouuh food to last on his 



THE PEOPLE OP THE LONG HOUSE 



su]3posed journey to the Happy Hunting- 
Ground. 

The money used by the Indians consisted of 
beads, wampum, and strips of leather adorned 
with shells. These same materials were also 
made into belts, necklaces, and other personal 
ornaments, which were Avorn by both men and 





(^=^ 



^ 



w 



6 

Indian war-s()n<r. 



women to show the wealth of the wearer. The 
Indians did not write, but made a record of 
important events by drawing a series of pic- 
tures on a piece of skin or bark. 

It was characteristic of the Indian that he 
never forgot a favor. When his friendship 
was once won he was a good friend for all time. 
But the Indian — although a good friend — was 
an equally bad enemy, and never forgot a wrong 
to himself or his tribe. Often, for some very 






10 TlIK STORY OF THE EMPIRE STATE 

,lvrU offense to a member of the Confederacy, 
a messen^^er with a ^vamlmm belt was sent at 
full speed thron-h the land of the Long House 
tribes, and his connng was a sig- 
nal that a council would take 
place. This gathering of the 
tril)es ^vas ahvays held at the 
seat of the Onondagas. At the 
council the great chiefs— advised 
by all the warriors, and even by 
tiie women— decided whether the 
tribes should go to war. If war 
was decided on, the warriors i.ainted 
themselves a bright red and deco- 
rated their heads with feathers, 
tliose who had been victorious in 
former V)attles being allowed to 
^^•ear eagles' feathers. Their wea- 
nons were the bow and arrow, 
the war-club and stone hatchet or 
tomahawk. 

The Indians were very sly, fi'e- 

Hcntlv ereei>ing upon an unsiis- 

peetino; enemy an.l killing huu 

while he slept. The great major- • 

ity of those taken i>risoners were 

cruellv treate.1. Sometimes they were made to 

pass between two rows of captors, each one oi 



Waiuiniin l"'lt. 



THE PEOPLE OP THE LONG HOUSE 



11 



wliom beat tbem with a rod, amid wild yells 
and screams. Again, their thumbs were cut oft", 
their nails and finger -joints were 
Inirned, and all the forms of tor- 
ture the Indians could 
devise were practised 
upon their captives. 
After the warriors were 
tired of this sort of sport 
the prisoners were tied to 
stakes, and the Indian chil- 
dren were allowed to throw 
live coals and hot ashes at 
them. Although the In- 
dians inflicted these pun- 
ishments on their prison- 
ers, an Indian wlio was 
taken captive never asked for quarter, but en- 
dured in silence all the cruelties he was forced to 
bear. Occasionally, when a prisoner had shown 
marked bravery, he was not tortured, but was 
adopted into a victorious tribe. A prisoner 
might be claimed for adoption l)y a tribe even 
at the very moment he was about to be put to 
death, and from that time on would receive 
only kindness and consideration from all mem- 
bers of the Five Nations. 

So these People of the Long House lived in 




War-club. 



Stone ax. 



12 



THE STORY OF TITR KMI'IKE STATE 



tills barbarous fasliion, waixino: almost contiinial 
warfaie apiiiist otlun' Indian tribes. 

In tlu' year H)()\) a Freiiclinian named Cliani- 
]>lain, who had been interested in ])lanting; a 
French colony where Quebec now stands, was 
})ersuaded by the Algouquins to join in an at- 
tack on the Five Nations. Champlain and his 
small force, together witli his Indian allies, 
ascended the Sorel lliver in canoes to the lake 



W^'^^^^^^7- 
















Detciit of the Iroquois. (Prom an old print.) 



that now bears his name. On the night of July 
29 they came n])on a war party of Tro(juois on 
the Mest side of the lake. No fighting was 
done until nioi-ning. At daybreak th<' Inxjuois 
left the lude bari'icadcs thev had built the 



THE PEOPLE OP THE LONG HOLTSE IH. 

iiiglit l)efore, and advanced slowly toward their 
enemy. As Cliamplain and his soldiers had 
guns, and the Iro(juois had only their usual 
weapons, the great People of the Long House 
fled before the first European invader, after 
seeino; two of their three chiefs shot down. 

Cliamplain made a great mistake in allying 
himself in this attack with a tribe hostile to 
the powerful Five Nations. It is true that 
by doing so he strengthened the ties already 
formed between the Algonquins and himself, 
but the hatred the Irorpiois felt for this tribe 
was 23romptly imparted to Cliamplain and the 
French. And it is owing to their hatred that 
the French never won a foothold in the terri- 
tory of the People of the Long House. 



niAl^TEPt II 



JIEX U Y II I- I) SON 



Ciia:\iplatx h.-ul come from the north to the 
laiul ol' the L'oqiiois in July, 1()09, and i'oiiiid 

only liati-ed and 0])posi- 
tion awaiting liini. On 
September 3 of tliat 
same year a little Dutch 
vessel called the Half 
Moon came sailing along 
the coast from the south, 
in search of a western 
passage to India. 8he 
rounded Sandy Hook, 
and her captain, Plenry 
Hudson, ordered the 
anchor dr()])ped not fnr from Manhattan Island. 
Several of the sailors went ashore. They found 
themselves in a countrv "pleasant with grass 
and t1o\vers and as goodly trees as ever they 
had seen, and very sweet smells came from 
them." Tliese sailors, unlike Cham])lain, came 

14 




ITciirv Hudson. 



HENRY HUDSON 15 

with no recognized foe, and their bearing was 
so friendly that the Indians who dwelt on Man- 
hattan Island felt no fear. They were merely 
filled with amazement at the " })ale-faced men/' 
whom they half believed to have dropped from 
the skies, ship and all. 

When the sailors returned to the Half Moon 
the Indians followed in their canoes, and ven- 
tured out to get a nearer view of the "great 
white bird," as they called the vessel with her 
large flapping sails. Captain Hudson invited 
the Indians to come aboard the ship, and during 
the few days the Dutch vessel lay at anchor they 
made several visits, bringing grapes, pumpkins, 
and furs to trade for beads, knives, and such 
other articles as the Dutch cared to give them. 

For three days the sailors had come and 
gone unmolested ; but on September 6, as one 
of the small boats with a party of sailors was 
returning to the ship from an exploring trip, 
two Indian canoes came in siglit. The Indians 
paddled rapidly to within shooting distance of 
the sailors' boat, and opened fire mth their 
bows and arrows. One sailor — John Colman — 
was killed by an arrow shot through his throat. 
His companions buried him on Sandy Hook, 
and he is known to history as the first Euro- 
pean killed on these waters. 



16 



TJIK STORY OF TOR EiMPIRE STATE 



Before long tlie Half Moon was again under 
way, and with sails spread went slouly noi-th 
followino; a Ijroad stream. Hudson and his 
sailors were enthusiastic in their hopes that this 
waterway would prove to be the passage to 
India. 

Sui-ely at no time of the year could this 
En<J-lish captain on a Dutch slii]) have found 

the surrounding coun- 
try more beautiful 
than in Septend)ei'. 
It seemed as if Na- 
ture had [)ut on lici' 
fairest i-obe to wel- 
come to this great 
; I'iver the man who was 
to give it his name. Ex- 
|»('ct;intly Hudson sailed 
along, spied on from be- 
hind rocks and bushes <»n 
either shore by the Indians, 
most of whom had never before seen a white 
man. 

Near the present site of Catskill several of 
the natives ventured to come to the sliij) ^\ ith 
Indian corn and tobacco, which they gladly ex- 
changed for triHes. 

At one ])lace Hudson Avas invited to go 




Til." Half :\roon ill ti 
Ihidsoii Kivci'. 



HENRY HUDSON 17 

asliore and visit an Indian chief in liis home. 
He accepted the invitation Avillingly, as he had 
so far fonud the Indians very kindly disposed. 
A great feast of pigeons and a roast dog was 
prepared in his honor. As night drew on, 
Hudson made the Indians understand that he 
^vished to return to his ship. By way of invi- 
tation to remain until morning, the Indians 
gathered together all the arrows in camp, broke 
them, and threw them on the fii'e to show 
Hudson he need have no fear. He thought 
best, however, to return to the shi]) as the 
Half Moon was to sail still farther north in the 
morning. 

Next she dropped anchor near the present 
city of Alban}^ Here occurred an incident 
which, although done in a s})irit of friendliness, 
was the beginning of most serious trouble. 
The Indians came to the Half Moon in larse 
numbers to trade with and to visit the "great 
white man." Hudson invited several of these 
guests to drink some wine that he had brought 
from Holland. The Indians had never drunk 
anything of the sort, and before trying it they 
smelled it and examined it suspiciously. When 
they did taste the wine, they took several big 
tastes and were delighted with the "tire water," 
as they called it. Little did Henry Hudson 




*^f'''€V^'^*:.< 





HENRY HUDSON 19 

suppose that that iirst driok of his " fire-water " 
would teach the ludiaus to demand whisky 
and wine in trade for fm-s from all the Euro- 
peans who were to follow him, or that from this 
little beginning would grow the Indians' desu'e 
for drink. 

While the Half Moon lay at anchor, Hudson 
sent a boat's crew some distance farther up the 
river, and great was his disappointment when 
the sailors reported on their return that they 
" found it to be at an end for shipping to go in." 
As he had not discovered the long-sought pas- 
sage to India, Hudson turned the little Half 
Moon about and once more sailed the length of 
the river. 

The one object of his trip was still unat- 
tained, and yet great results were to grow from 
his failure. This visit of Hudson's was the 
basis of the Dutch claim to one of the most 
beautiful and fertile j^arts of the great continent 
of America, and made the present State of New 
York the headquarters of the early Dutch 
settlers. 

On October 4 he sailed out to sea never to 
return to the home of his Indian friends. He 
came once more to America, but still looking 
for the western passage, went farther north and 
gave his name to Hudson Bay. While trying 



20 TUE STUliV OF THE EMPIRE STATE 

to find some western outlet to this great body 
of water liis sailors Ijeeame discouraged and dis- 
heartened, and finally, binding Hudson hand 
and foot, they put him atb'ift with his s(.>n in a 
small boat, and notliing more \vas ever heard of 
the great explorer Henry Hudson. 



CHAPTER III 

BEGINNINGS OF NEW NETHEELANDS 

The little Half Moou went back to Holland, 
and when the Dutch heard the story of Hud- 
son's discoveries and saw the rich furs the 
sailors had bought, they began to wish that 
they might see this new land, and especially 
that they might bring home ship-loads of furs. 
The more they thought about those furs the 
more they wanted them. So the next year and 
the next, and still the next, one ship after an- 
other crossed the Atlantic to the land visited 
by Hudson, each ship returning loaded ^vith 
the goods for which it had come. 

The Indians always received these fur 
traders with joy, and bargained with them for 
"fire-water" and other less harmful but much 
coveted novelties. 

In 1613 one of the Dutch trading vessels 
was burned while lying off the island of Man- 
hattan. As the Dutchmen who had left Hol- 
land in this ship had no way of returning home, 
3 31 



22 



THE STORY OF THE EMPIRE STATE 



they made, with the lielp of the Indians, a few 
rude huts in wliicli they lived while building a 
new ship to replace the one burned. These 
rude little huts were the beginnings of New^ 
York (/ity. During all the time the Dutchmen 
were at work on tlieir ship tlie Indians showed 
them marked friendship and supplied them with 
food and other necessities. 

Not long afterward an adventurous Dutch- 
man built a " strong house " or fort near where 










Old Dutch fort or "stronsr house." 



All)any now stands. The fort had but two 
large guns and eleven small ones, and was gar- 
risoned bv onlv ten men. However, it served 
as a ti'.-idiiig post, .-iiid from tlicrc tlic Dutc-li 
could trade witli the People of the Long House 



BEGINNINGS OF NEW NETHERLANDS' 23 

and be visited and traded with in return., This 
fort remained in good repair only three years. 
Then a new one was built, and when it was 
finished the Mohawks called a council and the 
Dutch and Indians smoked the peace-pipe to- 
gether. To make the compact more binding 
they buried a tomahawk, the Dutch promising 
to build a church over it so that it could never 
be dug up. This very first agreement to keep 
peace between white men and the Indians is 
spoken of as the Treaty of Tawasentha. 

Although trading vessels continued to go 
back and forth, it was some time before any 
marked changes took place in New Netherlands, 
as the Dutch now called their possessions bor- 
dering on the Hudson. During this time of 
apparently little progress, there was being 
formed in Holland a company of merchants 
known as the Dutch West India Comj)any. In 
their charter the Company agreed, aside from 
their commercial interests, to do all in their 
power to build up a Dutch colony and a Dutch 
trade in New Netherlands. In i^eturn the Dutch 
Government o:ave the Company the exclusive 
right to all Dutch territory in America, and 
j^ledged itself to defend the Company in case of 
war. 

At last, in 1623, ten years after those few 



24 



THE STORY OF THE EMPIRE STATE 



liuts had been l)iiilt on Manhattan Island, the 
West India Company sent out its first colonists. 
There were only tliirty families, numbering one 



hundred 
West In- 
vei'y few 
on Man- 
were sent 
er, others 



and ten in all. The 
(Ha Company al]o\v(Ml 
of them to remain 
hattan Island. Some 
up the Hudson Riv- 
into \vli;it later be- 
came Connecticut, 
and the rest farther 
south than our State 
now extends. The colonists 
found tlie country wild and 
^ rough, and it recpiired liard work 
"^j" and brave hearts to build homes 
and provide for the families. But 




Si'ttluiiii'iil 
or 1(523. 



these men were determined. They 
laid out farms, planted ci'ops, and 
settled down to make the best of 
w hat they had. Other colonists followed and 
besfan their stfuo-jjrle with the niicultivated land. 
Later horses, cattle, sheep, seeds, plows, and 
other farming implements were sent from Hol- 
land, and life became easier for the pioneers of 
the Em]iire State. Consolers of the sick came. 
They not only visited persons who wei'e ill, but 
on Sundays read the Bible to those \\ho cnj-ed 



BEGINNINGS OP NEW NETHERLANDS 25 

to bear. The readings ^vere held in old mills 
or in other rude though convenient places of 
meeting. 

For the first few years the Dutch merely 
helped themselves to the land, claiming it was 
theirs by riglit of discovery. In 1626 Peter 
Minuit was appointed governor of New Nether 
lands by the West India Company, and was 
sent to Manhattan to undertake the duties of 
his office. Being an honest man, he decided 
that the Indians were still the rightful owners 
of the land. He therefore called together the 
tribes wliicli had formerly occupied Manhattan, 
and offered to buy the island from them. He 
paid for the entire island beads, knives, and 
rings to the value of twenty -four dollars. 

As the island now belonged to the Com- 
pany by right of purchase, the governor built a 
fort to protect the Manhattan settlement from 
invasion. From that time it became customary 
to buy land from the Indians, and to build 
rough forts for the defense of each settlement. 

The treaty of peace with the Indians was 
kept tolerably well, but occasionally trouble 
arose. During the war between the Mohawks 
and Mohegans, the Dutclnnan in charge of the 
fort near the present site of Albau}^ was in- 
duced by the Mohegans to join them in an at- 



26 THE STORY OP THE EMPIRE STATE 

tack. This lie ])i'epared to do with six of Lis 
men. The Moliawks surprised these allies, 
however, before tliey were read}' to attack, and 
the Dutch leadci- and tliree of his men were 
killed. The Indians ate one of the men after 
well roasting him. 

At ancjther time a seMsh governor was the 
cause of an outbreak. He tried to collect a 
tribute of furs and corn from the Indians along 
the Hudson, by claiming that the Dutch had 
protected them from their enemies. Now these 
were the same Indians who had jirovided food 
for the white men ^^'llose ship liad l)een burned, 
so of course this ungrateful demand for tribute 
angered them, and they attacked and sw^ept out 
of existence one of the Dutch settlements. 

Again the peace was broken because a 
beaver coat was stolen from a young Indian 
while lie was driiddng "fire-water." In his 
anger he kiUed a Dutchman who had nothing 
to do witii the matte]', Ilis tribe offered to 
pay the governor for the maiTs life, but the 
govei'iior would not accept the peace-oifering. 
Instead, he ordered two Indian villages at- 
tacked, and men, women, and children were 
murdered in their sleep. This injustice so 
roused the Indians that for a time it looked as 
if the settlers would be entirely swei)t from 



•2S THE STORY OP THE EMPIRE STATE 

New Netliei'laiids. Finally peace was restored, 
but for some time afterward tlie Iiidians at- 
tacked single boat-loads on the river, stole furs, 
and ]>laye(l treacbei'ous tricks on tlie Dutcli. 

Many of the early settlers came chieHy to 
trade. As they did not make permanent 
homes in Ne^v Netherlands, the colony grevv^ 
slowly, and the ])rospects for prosperous settle- 
ments were so discouraging that tlie West India 
Company saw that something must be done. 
They devised the plan of offering sixteen miles 
of land along some navigable Avater to any one 
who within four yeai's w(»uhl agree to have 
fifty persons settled on the grant. The men 
who accepted these tracts were called patroons. 
Each patroon also agreed to sujiport a minister 
and a schoolmaster. Thus there was no excuse 
for little Dutch children being either very 
wicked or very ignorant. And so it happened 
that the children of these early colonists grew 
into men and women noted always for their 
virtue, honesty, industry, an<l unswerving loy- 
alty to what they believed to l)e right. 



CHAPTER IV 

PETER STUYVESANT AND THE DUTCH COLONISTS 

It was a long voyage from Holland to 
America in those days of sailing vessels. The 
trip might be made in eight weeks if the winds 
were favorable, but the winds were often con- 
trary, the sea rough, and the time seemed very 
long indeed before land appeared. Is it any 
wonder, then, that when they finally landed on 
Manhattan, many of the travel-tired newcomers 
were quite content to settle on the island and 
call it home ? Here was the seat of govern- 
ment, and here naturally grew up a thriving 
settlement. 

Along the few irregularly laid-out streets 
were built pretty little Dutch houses with their 
gable ends of colored l)ricks toward the street. 
Each roof had one weathercock, and often a 
house was decorated with several. Before the 
main door of these dwellings were poi'ches with 
benches built along the sides, and in front of 
many of the houses were gardens of bright-col- 

29 



PETER STUYVESANT AND DUTCH COLONISTS 31 

ored flowers. In the winter the flowers were 
gone, the porch was abandoned, and the family 
gathered around the huge fireplace, or sat in 




street in New Amsterrlam. 

the deep window-seats contrastino; the bleak 
outdoor view with the ruddy glow of the roar- 
ing, crackling fire within. 

Dutch windmills with their long sweeping 
arms were scattered about the country. Those 
built on hills were used to convey signals to 



32 



THE STORY OF THE EMPIRE STATE 



(Tardiier's Island and other neighboring- settle- 
ments. If two of the arms pointed dii'eetly up 
and down and the mill door \vas shut, the set- 
tlers knew it to 1)e the 
sign of an ap})i'oaching 
enemy. The arms in this 
same position with the 
door open meant some- 
thing quite different, and 
so a irreat number of siij- 
nals could be conveyed 
by simply changing the 
direction of the 
^% ai'ijis an<l closincror 
o|)ening the door. 

In a place so 
j)ul>lic that none 
could fail to see 
them stood tlie 
stocks, pillory, and whi])]iing-])<)st. At almost 
any time at least one of the three might be 
found occupied by some offender of the ])ul)lic 
peace. One man who stole six cabbages fi'om 
a neighl^or was forced to stand day after day 
in the jiillory with a cabbage on his head. If 
a culprit was guilty of telling an untruth or 
coiiimiftiug a theft, a large sign with the word 
''Liar'^ or "Thief ''was huuir about his neck. 




v^^^S^'^m^^ 



An old Dutch wiiidinill. 



PETER STUYVESANT AND DUTCH COLONISTS 33 

Many offenses were punished by hanging the 
guilty person to the whipping-post by a girdle 
about his waist. In this position he received 
from the public whipper the number of lashes 
fitted to his crime. It is easy to imagine that 
the children lost few opportunities of ridiculing 
the unfortunate victims who were made to suf- 
fer in these conspicuous devices. 




The stocks. 



Each day was much like all other days in 
this settlement on Manhattan Island, During 
all ])ut the winter months the cowherd \vent 
through the town at break of day, at each 



34 



THE STORY OF THE EMPIRE STATE 



house blowing three loud bhists on his horn to 
call the cows to follow liiiii to pasture, where he 




Vfv 



Tlic pillory. 

cared for theiu all day. His horn also roused 
the inmates of the house. Soon the fire ^\■as 
burning in the great chininey, breakfast ^\•as 
served, and the family ^vent about its daily 
tasks. The men went either to wovV in the 
fields, to fish or to trade with the Indians. 
The children started for school, and the women 
l)usie(l themselves making the family clothes or 
cleaning the already clean house. At sunset 
the cowherd's hoi-ii was heard again as he 



PETER STUYVESANT AND DUTCH COLONISTS 35 

drove liis charges home for the uight. Supper 
brought the family together, and the short 
eveniug was spent on the porch or in wander- 
ing from house to house discussing the events 
of the day with the neighbors. Often an 
Indian would be seen smoking on one of the 
porches in friendly talk with the man of the 




Punishment of a drunkard. 



house. At nine the curfew rang. The fire 
was carefully covered with ashes. All lights 



36 



THE STORY OF THE EMI'IKK STATE 



were put out, and every Dutcliman was in bed 
— that is, every Dutclunan })ut one. All niiilit 
lonu: the watchman walked the streets with a 
strong staff, an hour-glass, a lantern, and a large 
rattle. At each house he stopped, shook his 
rattle to warn thieves he was near, called out 
the time and the weathej*, and passed on. lie 
was ou duty until dawn, when once more the 




Ciilniiial fii'cplacf. 

three blasts of the cowherd's horn awoke the 
town to another day. 

The dress of these Dutch settlers would 
seem curious to the people of our time. The 
men wore several jiairs of breeches at once. 
This w^as quite easy to do as they were very 
full, being drawn into a l)and at the knee. The 
coat was decorated with lariit' brass buttons. 



PETER STUYVESANT AND DUTCH COLONISTS 37 




.F 



Dutch country people of 
old times. 



Hii<»:h buckles were worn on the shoes. A 
DutcLmau's bat was low in the crown and 
veiy broad in the brim. 
His long pipe was his con- 
stant companion, and was 
in use morning, noon, and 
night. The women wore 
several short skirts com- 
ing just below the knees, 
and very gay -colored stock- 
ino;s. Each woman also 
wore a large patchwork 

pocket. A pair of scissors and a pincushion 

hung by a ribbon from her belt. Her hair was 

combed straight back from 

her face and covered by a 

close-fitting calico ca}). 

A man was obliged to 
supply himself with two 
leather buckets, which were 
hung in some convenient 
place in the liouse. When 
a fire-alarm was given he 
caught up his buckets and 
hurried to tlie fire, where 
the people formed into two 
lines extending from the burning building to 

the nearest water. The buckets were filled and 
4 




Dutch women of old 
times. 



38 



TllK STOKV OF THE KiMl'lKE STATE 



passed \i\) one line; tlie water was tLrowii on 
tlie Hie, and the empty buckets were passed 














^t-.i^^^ 



A bucket Iji'ifjiidc 
at a fire. 



])a('k (low 11 tlie other line to he refilled. When 
the fire was out, e.-u'li ni.iii picked out his own 
buckets and took them home. 



PETER STUYVESANT AND DUTCH COLONISTS 31) 

The sclioo] master was a very busy man. 
He not only taught the school, but added to 
his income by digging graves, leading the choir, 
and, in fact, by doing anything he was fitted 
for, and possibly some things he was not. 

The Dutch were the first European race to 
bring African slaves to America. For many 
years the slaves were owned by the Dutch 
West India Company, who rented their services 
to the settlers. Later they were sold at auc- 
tion. 

In two notable matters the Dutch deserved 
nuich praise, and showed themselves to be far 
more liberal and just than the settlers of some 
of the other colonies. In the first place, no 
innocent person Avas killed as a witch. Again, 
relio:ious freedom existed in all the towns of 
NcAv Netherlands. People of any creed or 
from any country were made welcome. Con- 
sequently, although Dutch customs prevailed, 
all the settlers were by no means Dutch. 
There were French and English as well, which 
necessitated the laws being published in three 
languages. 

The great fete days of the Dutch were 
New Year's and May Day. To them we also 
oAve the yearly visit of Santa Claus, colored 
Easter eggs, and St. Valentine's Day. 



40 THE STORY UK THE EMPIRE STATE 

In the year 1047, the 27tli of May was a 
i:;ala-(lay. Ou that day the new governor — 
i^eter Stuyvesaut — arrived from Ilolkuid. He 
was the fourth 2:overnor sent bv the Dutch 
West India ComjJany. The three who had 
been recalled had (h)ne little for the colonists, 
and had l)een self-willed, conceited, or tyran- 
nical. Is it, tlien, to be wondered at that every 
one turned out to welcome Peter Stuyvesant 
^vith a heart full of hope that at last the West 
India Company had sent them a fail' and just 
governor^ The entire population of the town 
waited for an hour or more in the sun before 
the governor appeared. When he finally came 
he " strutted like a peacock " on his wooden 
leg, an<l received tlie shouts of welcome in a 
haughty and unbending manner. 

In his first address Stuyvesant told the 
settlers that he had '' come to govern them as 
a father governs his children." Now a Dutch 
father governed his children in ;i xciy severe 
and sti-ict way, so this speech did not go far 
toward reassuring the ]-)eople as to Peter 
Stuyvesant's intentions. Undoubtedly his mo- 
tives ^vere really the best in the world, but his 
stern personal appearance, hot temper, and bull- 
dog determination did much to offset in public 
opinion all the good he did. 



PETER STUYVESANT AND DUTCH COLONISTS 41 

As soon as his wife and children were set- 
tled Stuyvesant began his duties as he saw 
them. First he repaired the fort and made 
what improvements he could in the town ; 



^MSr 



■JTr-riTftr^- 








^^,\r^ 



r\ 



Wmmm'JE. 




Stuyvesant's town house, erected in 1658. Afterward called the 
White Hall. (Prom an old print in Valentine's Manual 
for 1862.) 



then he built a new and handsome house for 
the governor to live in. Later, he undertook 
in his headstrong way to su]ipress the sale of 
liquor and firearms to the Indians, and when 
his efforts were meeting with a measure of sue- 



42 THE STORY OK TIIK EMPIRE STATE 

cess he imported a case of guns to sell the red 
men for his own profit. 

Up to the time of Peter Stuyvesant's arrival 
the Dutch, settlement had l)een open to people 
of all creeds, and each man had woi-shijied as 
seemed best to him. But the new governor 
was a Dutch Reformist and decided that the 
Dutch Reform service alone should be held in 
New Netherlands. lie threatened to fine any 
[)reacher using another form of service five 
Imndred dollars, and any one attending such a 
service one hundred dollai's. lie imprisoned 
and cruelly treated Quakers, and can-ied liis 
ideas along this line to such an extreme that 
the West India Company interfered. 

The discontent of the settlers grew, and 
from time to time ajijieals were sent to Hol- 
land complaining of the arbitrary conduct of 
the governor. And each ai)peal won some 
small concessions which were ungraciously ac- 
ce]ited by Stuyvesant. 

He was called " Headstrong Peter," and 
" Old Silver Leg." Surely it is not necessary 
to say why the first of these names was given 
him. The fact that his wooden leg was deco- 
i'ate<l with silver bands was the cause of the 
second. Many of his faults can 1)e attributed 
to his devotion to the Company which lind sent 



PETER STUYVESANT AND DUTCH COLONISTS 43 

liiui as governor to their colony. He certainly 
did his best to further their interests and to 
carry out all points of the contract between 
them and himself. His manner was his mis- 
fortune, and he was heartily disliked in his 
official i30sition. However, in later years, when 
he was no longer governor, he formed many 
friendships with the very })ersons who failed to 
assist him when he needed their support. 

In 1664 an English fleet ap})eared in the 
harbor. A letter was sent to Peter Stuyvesant 
saying that if the Dutch would surrender to 
the English, their jn-operty would be protected, 
all their rights and customs would continue, 
and many advantages would result. Peter 
Stuyvesant tore the letter to pieces and stamped 
upon it. But the settlers were in favor of sur- 
rendering, and ^vhen he called for men to re- 
pulse the English and hold the fort, none came 
to his assistance. Many begged him to surren- 
der. He sadly replied, " I would rather be 
carried out dead than give up in this way." 
But what could one poor governor do when all 
the people of the town refused to support him ? 
He finally very reluctantly signed a surrender, 
and New Netherlands became British property. 
The Dutch garrison were allowed to march out 
with their arms, ^vith drums beating and colors 



44 THE STORY OF THE EMPIRE STATE 

flying. The surrender took place exactly fifty- 
five years from the day Henry Hudson in his 
Half Moon appeared before Manhattan Island. 
Peter Stuyvesant went sorrowfully back to 
Holland to rej)ort the surrender to the AVest 
India ('ompany, and then returned to Manhat- 
tan, where he lived an honored and useful citi- 
zen until his death at eighty years of age. 



CHAPTER Y 

NEW NETHERLANDS UNDEE ENGLISH JRULE 

The victorious Englisli fleet had sailed under 
the direction of James, the Duke of York, and 
now in his honor the colony was renamed the 
Province of New York ; the village of New 
Amsterdam, on the Island of Manhattan, became 
the City of New York, and the chief settlement 
up the Hudson was called Albany, from another 
of the duke's titles. The commander of the 
fleet was appointed governor. He fulfilled all 
the promises made the settlers by the English 
when surrender was demanded, but for some 
reason the colony did not prosper. Trade with 
Holland was cut off. European wars prevented 
many new settlers fi'om coming, and the colo- 
nists grew as discontented under the English as 
they had been under the Dutch. 

One point of interest in the short English 
rule was the establishment of the first ])ost 
messengers between Boston and New York. A 
locked box was placed in the office of the 

45 



46 



TIIR STORY OF THE EMI'IRK STATE 



colonial secretary in New York in which all 
the mail-matter iov l^oston was dropj^ed. About 
once a month the messenger would oj^en this 

box, take the mail, 
and start for Bos- 
ton on horseback. 




Packhorses. 



He found his way by followinii: a trail of blazed 
trees. On his return the mail he l)i"ouiiht from 
Boston was placed on a table, where it was well 
thumbed by all who cared to examine it. And 
from this simple beginning has grown our ex- 
cellent system of post-office and mail deliveiy. 
In 1()7H a Dutch fleet was cruising along 
the shore of Vii'ginia capturing tobacco ships. 



NEW NETHERLANDS UNDER ENGLISH RULE 47 



On one of the captured ships was a certain 
Samuel Hopkins, who told the Dutch com- 
mander some very interesting news. He said 
the governor of New" York was away from the 
city, that the garri- 
son was very small 
and the fort poor- 
ly defended. As 
this seemed to 
promise a fair op- 
portunity of recov- 
ering the colony 
from the English, 
the Dutch fleet 
sailed as rapidly as 
possible along the 
coast, headed for 
New York harbor. 

Captain Manning had been left in command 
of the fort dui'ing the English governor's ab- 
sence. When he saw the Dutch fleet entering 
the harbor he called for volunteers, seized ])ro- 
visions, and did all in his power to put the fort 
in condition for defense. Instead of giving him 
the aid he asked, the inhabitants spiked the 
guns l)efore the City Hall and left Captain Man- 
ning to face the Dutch wath only the small 
garrison of English soldiers. In spite of this 




A mail (aim i ol 

tllC '<(.\LllttH lltll 

( Liitiin 



48 THE STORY OF THE EMPIRE STATE 

limited force lie bravely challenged the Dutch 
to answer ^vhy they had come to disturb the 
peace. The reply was, " We have come for our 
own ;iii(l our own we will have.'" Six liundred 
men landed and were joined by foui' hiuKhed 
of the Dutch settlers. This foive was ])repar- 
ing to attack the fort when the English flag was 
lowered and Captain Manning agreed to sur- 
render on condition the English soldiers be 
allowed to marcli out as the Dutch had d(>ne, 
with all the lumors of war. 

Once moi'e the Dutch had ])ossession of the 
fort, and all the towns of the colony welcomed 
their return after the nine years (►f English rule. 
Unfortunately there was no cable in those days 
to cairy the good news to Holland. Before 
woi'd reached there a treaty was entered into 
between England and Holland by Avhicii 1I(»1- 
land agreed to give up all claim to the colony 
she then believed to be in the possession of the 
EnL;:lisli. The treaty was signed six months 
after the reca])ture of the colony, and again 
New Netherlan<ls ])ecame English ju'operty, and 
Dutch I'ule cauie to an end in America. 



CHAPTER VI 

COLONIAL DIFFICULTIES 

While the Dutch settlers were struggling 
to s^ain some voice in aft'airs under tlie ooverii- 
ors of their province, colonists from other coun- 
tries were coming to America. By the time 
Peter Stuyvesant surrendered to the English, 
Sir Walter Raleigh's colony of Virginia had 
been established, also the colonies of Maryland, 
North Carolina, and South Carolina. The Pil- 
grims had come in the Mayflower to the barren 
shores of what is now Massachusetts. And 
they, with those who followed, had founded 
colonies in Massachusetts, Connecticut, New 
Ham})shire, and Rhode Island. For the most 
part the settlers of all these colonies were of 
English biith. One other nation had sent out 
colonists who had founded New Sweden on 
the land that later became the State of Dela- 
ware. 

As soon as the Duke of York had posses- 
sion of the Dutch colony he gave two of his 

49 



50 TIIK STORY OF THE H:\iriKE STATE 

frieuds a [)ortiuii of it which they named New 
Jersey. 

Some time after the second surrender of the 
Dutch, a wealthy young Englishman named 
William Penn bou<i;ht from Eni»:land's kiuii' a 
ti'act of land which was called Penn's Woods, 
or Pennsylvania. To this laud William Penn 
hrought a persecuted religious sect known as 
the Quakers, and established a colony for tlieni. 

The country was large enough to allow each 
of these colonies all the land it needed, and 
each \\ as too much taken up with its own diffi- 
culties to interfere to any great extent with the 
affairs of its neighbors. Occasionally a question 
had arisen as to just wdiere lay the border line 
between Connecticut and New Netherlands, l)ut 
this (juestion had been settled duiing the first 
occupation by the English. The Swedes had 
overlapped the country claimed by the West 
India Company, and had been forced by Peter 
Stuyvesant to surrender the nominal possession 
of their colony though they continued to live in 
their settlements. So, except for petty jealous- 
ies, peace prevailed between the colonies south 
of the St. Lawrence Kiver. 

Just north of that river lay the French set- 
tlement of New France. From the time of 
Champlain's attack on the Irocpiois and his dis- 



COLONIAL DIFFICULTIES 51 

CO very of Lake CLaiiiplaiii, the French bad 
claimed the right to iuvade the Dutch province 
at their pleasure. French missionaries had come 
to the land of the Long House, and had under- 
gone dreadful hardships and cruel torture at 
the hands of the Indians for the double purpose 
of converting the savages and of winning their 
friendship for the French. But although many 
of the missionaries had succeeded in making 
converts, in establishing stations in the tenitory 
of the Iroquois, and even, in some cases, in be- 
ing adopted into one of the tribes, they could 
not induce the Indians to live in continual peace 
with the French. 

The Indians persisted in appearing suddenly 
before some small French settlement, in burning 
the houses, killing the inmates, taking some 
away as prisoners, and retreating as suddenly as 
they had come. The poor French settlers lived 
in constant dread of these attacks, and to pre- 
vent them the French sent several expeditions 
into the Indians' territoiy in the hope of putting 
an end to the People of the Long House. But 
the Indians were too sly. As the French force 
would advance the Indians would retreat, burn- 
ino; the corn and villa2:es behind them so that 
the French found it hard to get food and would 
finally go back home. Occasionally a peace 



52 



THE STORY OF THE EMPIRE STATE 



was formed, but treachei-y od one side or the 
other always led to its being broken. 

The French had one governor who knew 
how to get on with their enemy. This was 
Count Frontenac. He would call the Indians 
to a council, and there dance the war-dance with 











^ .^.f^-^^'f , 



Illill.lll w.uf.iic 



them, paintinii: 
himself as they 
did. He even learned to 
imitate their savage whoop. 
^ - ' Through this ability to \vin 
their hearts Count Frontenac might have done 
nmch toward jmtting a sto]^ to tlie continual 
fighting in New York, but a])out the time of 
his becoming governor war broke out between 
England and Fiance. And as war l)etween the 
countries meant war between their colonies, the 



COLONIAL DIFFICULTIES 53 

French Kins; decided that here was a chance 
to take possession of the entire colony of New 
York. He therefore sent Frontenac directions 
to do all he could to drive the English, who 
were then in possession, out of their province. 
The People of the Long House held a great 
council to decide which nation they should be- 
friend. The council resulted in two of the 
tribes siding with the French and three \vith 
the English. 

In the winter of 1690 Frontenac sent an 
ai'niy against Schenectady, wliich was the most 
westerly town of New York. Late at night, 
after all the inhabitants were asleep, the gates 
of the fortifications were opened and the Frencli 
army noiselessly entered-. The to^v n was so far 
from expecting such visitors that no sentinels 
were on duty, except some snow-men put up 
by the boys. So it was (j[uite simple for the 
French to slip inside the stockade before 
they were seen. Then, with a great yell, they 
fell upon the settlers and killed sixty men, 
women, and little children. Some few escaped 
in their nii^ht-clothes, and went throusfh the 
snow and cold to Albany, but their feet were 
frozen in the attem|)t. The invaders burned 
the town, and, taking as prisoners those of 
the settlers they had not killed and who had 



TllH STOKV OF TIIK K.MriKK STATH 



not esfuped, tliey liurried back to Moutreal on 
snow-shoes. 

Tlie next spring some of the English coh)- 
nies joined in sending forces by hind and water 
to attack the P^'rench, but nothing came of tlie 
expedition. So it went on for 
seven or eight years ; the Frencli 
sending an occasional war party 
against tlie Eni^lisli, and the Eno- 
lisli sending an occasional war 
[)arty against the French. Then 
a peace was made between France 
and England, and aljout tlie same 
time Count Frontenac died, and 
tlie P'reiich were dej)riv^ed of their 
leader. 

Nothing had been gained by 
all the battles, and many lives 
had ]>een lost. New France still lay entirely 
north of the St, Lawrence, the People of the 
Long House still held their own territory inde- 
pendent of all newcomers, and New York was 
still an Eno'li.'di colonv. 




Snow-slioc: 



CHAPTER VII 

SOME ENGLISH GOVERNORS AND JACOB LEISLER 

The French invasions of the Indian terri- 
tory threatened the province of New York and 
required constant attention from the early Eng- 
lish governors. Still, these men found plenty 
of time to look out for the interests of the Duke 
of York and for themselves. The colonists, too, 
were much alarmed for fear the fio-htino- mio-ht 

o o o 

extend into their land, but their alarm did not 
make them think the less of the few pri\dleges 
they had won, or try with less energy to win 
others. 

The first governor to come from England 
after the colony was signed away fi'om the 
Dutch was Major Edmund Andros. He began 
his term as governor by putting on trial poor 
Captain Manning, who had been forced to sur- 
render to the Dutch fleet. The captain was 
charged with neglect of duty and cowardice, 
and was taken in front of the City Hall and 
publicly disgraced by having his sword broken 

55 



THE STORY OF THE EMPIRE STATE 



over liis head aud beiug pronounced unlit to till 
any office of trust. At another time Major 
Andros forced a man to stand one hour on tlie 
whipping-post simply because the unfortunate 
presented a list of griev- 
ances signed by the pe<)j)le 
of tlie town in wliicli he 
lived. By such stern and 
aibitrary acts Governor 
Andros soon won tlie title 
of Tyrant. He did little, 
if anything, to lessen the 
discontent of the settlers, 
and after ten years he was 
re-called. 

Tlien came Thomas 
Dongan. AV'liiU' he ^\as 
governor several im[)oi-tant events took ])lace. 
The Duke of York had l)een repeatedly told 
tliat the coh)nists desii'ed to have a voice in 
their own government. Tlien, too, he realized 
that lie needed money to support the colony. 
So he decided to make a bargain \\ ith tlie set- 
tlers. He sent orders by Governor Dongan 
that they were to have an Asseml)ly of not more 
than seventeen members, chosen by the peo2)le. 
The Assembly was to franic laws which were to 
be considered bindinii' unless the duke himself 




SOME ENGLISH GOVERNORS AND JACOB LEISLER 57 

disapproved of them. In return for this privi- 
lege the colonists were to pay the public debts, 
care for the soldiers, and maintain the govern- 
ment. 

And now the long-looked-for time had come 
at last ! The New York colonists were to 
make their own laws ! Enthusiasm was at its 
height, and all waited expectantly to see what 
this representative body of the colony would 
do. The most important result was the framing 
of a charter by which the colonists were to have 
the right to vote, to worship in their own way 
and to be tried by jur}^ All these privileges 
were very important. But there was one other 
point mentioned in this first charter drawn up 
by American people which should be esjiecially 
noted. This was based on the English law 
that Englishmen should have the right to de- 
cide, through their representatives in the House 
of Commons, what taxes were to be imposed 
upon them. The people of New York, being 
allo\ved no representatives in tlie House of 
Commons, claimed that they \'\'ere not to be 
taxed without their consent. When the work 
was completed the citizens of New York City 
were called together by the ])lowing of trum- 
pets, and the Dongan charter, as it was called, 
was read to them in front of the City Hall. 



58 



THE STORY OF THE EMPIRE STATE 



TJiere was general rejoicing, and tlie people 
went lioine well pleased with the members of 
the Assembly. To properly elect the members 
of all future assemblies^ the pi'oviuce of New 
^'oik was now divi<le(l into ten counties. 




IB: f S''Jj|«l .. :.-,.c>-.r'.. 



» ^"', - 



m 



r^o " ' ' " R "'ii 



u i.n; 







?!-! ^^r 






First City Iliill. Eroeted 1642, takon down in 1700. (Fnmi an 
old print in V.-dcntino's ^laniial for 1852.) 

It seemed that the colonists had taken a 
great step toward self-government. And so 
they had. But their gain wms only tem])orary. 
Two years later this Duke of Yoi'k became 
King James II of England, and then he 
promptly revoked the charter and refused to 
allow the Assembly to mt^et. Next, he recalled 



SOME ENGLISH GOVERNORS AND JACOB LEISLER 59 

the just and loyal Governor Dongan, and united 
all the colonies north of Pennsylvania under 
one governor. Major Andros was again sent 
to America, this time as governor of the united 
province. His headquarters were in Boston. 
As it took so long in those days for news to be 
sent or for a man to travel from place to place, 
a lieutenant-governor was appointed in New 
York to look after the King's interests while 
the governor was away. 

Over three years passed by under this new 
order of thins-s, when suddenly stirrino: news 
came from England. It was announced through- 
out the colonies that James had acted in so 
arbitrary a way that the English could not and 
would not have him for their king ; that they 
had invited William, Prince of Orange, to come 
to England and rule in place of James, and that 
James had fled. When the people of Boston 
heard the news they seized Major Andros and 
put him in prison, and, with no governor, the 
united province came to an end. 

The Prince of Oran2;e was a Dutchman, and 
his becoming King William of England brought 
joy to all the Dutch inhabitants of New York. 
But the lieutenant-governor refused to believe 
the report, and would not publicly proclaim 
William as King. He sent to England asking 



00 THE STORY OF THE EMPIRE STATE 

for instructions. While waiting for these or- 
ders his manner was so disagreeable that the 
militia demanded that he give up the keys of 
the fort. As he was afraid to stand up for his 
rights, he surrendered the keys and sailed for 
Enu'land. At this time there lived in the 
colony a brave German named Jacol) Leisler. 
He was captain of the militia comi^any which 
demanded the keys, and when they were sur- 
rendered the soldiers |)resented them to Leisler 
and asked him to act as governor until the new 
King should send a governor from England. 

Leisler was the first colonist to hold the 
|)ost of governor in Ne^v York. At once two 
j)arties s})rang up — those wlio wanted him to be 
governor, and those who did not. The anti- 
Leisler party so roused his angei* by their bit- 
ter and persistent op])osition that he im})ris- 
oned two of their nund)er and kept them shut 
up for thirteen months. This only added to 
the strong feeluig against him. Still, in spite 
of his enemies, he worked hard foi' the good 
of the colony. He repaired the fort, built a 
battery, and in ever^^ way gave evidence of his 
earnest desire to carry on the government as it 
had been managed under the English gov- 
ernors. 

The Prince of Orange, on IxH'oming King 



SOME ENGLISH GOVERNORS AND JACOB LEISLER 01 

of England, appointed a governor for New 
York, but he was so long in starting that 
Leisler had filled his place for nearly two years 
before he appeared. On the way across the 
ocean some accident to the ship delayed him, 
and a vessel bearing an English captain and 
two companies of soldiers arrived at New York 
some six months before the governor. The 
vessel had hardly landed when Leisler's ene- 
mies called upon the officer in charge and asked 
him to take command until the King's repre- 
sentative should arrive. The captain demanded 
in a haughty way that Leisler surrender the 
fort, although he refused to show any official 
papers which entitled him to take command. 
Leisler declined to surrender, saying he would 
wait imtil he could give the fort to the man 
sent by King William to receive it. However, 
he offered quarters in the city to the soldiers 
and their leader. LTrged on by Leisler's ene- 
mies, the captain tried to take the fort by force, 
and as Leisler defended it, men were killed on 
both sides. 

At length the governor arrived, and Leis- 
ler promptly and Avillingly gave up the fort. 
Still Leisler's enemies were not satisfied. They 
succeeded in having him arrested, and did all 
in their power to persuade the governor to 



62 THE STOHY OP THE EMPIRE STATE 

have him killed on the charge of treason and 
niiirder. This the governor refused to allow 
until he should hear what the King wished. 
All arguments failing, these bitter enemies en- 
tered into a plot to secure the governor's signa- 
ture to a death-warrant. He was invited to a 
party where he was given so much wine tbat 
he became drunk, and not realizing what he 
was doing, he signed away the life of Jacob 
Leisler. 

On a dark, rainy Saturday morning in May, 
1691, Leisler was led to the sc:dl'old and hanged. 
His last words were a prayer that his ene- 
mies might be forgiven. Leisler's property 
was taken from his wife and cliildren, l)ut four 
years after his death the })i'operty was n^stored, 
and the Bi'itish Parliament voted that he should 
be considered innocent of the crimes for wliich 
he was killed. Jacob Leisler may have been a 
usurper ; he may have been determined and 
stern with those O])posed to him ; but surely 
he Avas a man that no New York boy of to-day 
need be ashamed to sj^enk of as a colonist of 
the Empire State. 



CHAPTER VIII 

COLONIAL LIFE ITNT THE EAELY PART OF THE 
EIGHTEENTH CENTURY 

For fifty years after the death of Leisler 
little of importance took place in the colony. 
England went on sending governors, some of 
whom worked for the welfare of the colony, 
while others worked equally hard for their 
own welfare regardless of the colony. And 
under each of the governors the colonists 
gained privileges that tended toward self-gov- 
ernment. The good governors worked with 
the people, helping them win these privileges, 
while the had governors unintenti<^nally forced 
them to demand new rights in self-defense. 
The Assembly was restored ; the right to de- 
cide what articles should be taxed was tempo- 
rarily allowed, and step by step the peojde 
gained power. 

The cities gradually grew and were im- 
proved. In 1 700 there were 20,000 inhabitants 
in the colony. In New York City the dark, 

63 



COLONIAL LIFE IN THE EIGHTEENTH CENTURY 65 



dreary streets of a few years before were now 
lighted by lanterns. Every seventli house was 
ordered to hang out a lantern, the six houses 
between sharing the expense with the seventh. 
If by any chance a lantern was forgotten the 
person responsible w^as fined eighteen cents for 
each offense. 

Pains were taken to keep the streets clean. 
On Fi'iday each citizen was ordered to sweep 
all the dirt in front of his house into a single 
heap. Then the cartman came, and the heaps 
were shoveled into his cart. If the cartman 
shoveled the dirt himself he was paid twelve 
cents a load, but if the citizens did the shovel- 
ing only half that 
sum was given. Six 
wells were dug in 
the street to sup- 
ply water in case 
of fire. 



A 



newspaper 




An early tiriiiting-press. 



was started by the 

first printer to settle 

in the colony. This 

paper was the size 

of a sheet of foolscap, and was printed once a 

week. Later a second paper — a rival of the 

first — appeared. John Zenger, the editor of the 



QQ THE STOKV OF THE EMPIRE STATE 

second papei', criticized the governor in \ery 
plain language, and was imprisoned for doing 
so. His trial is a noted one, and, as he won, 
it established the freedom of the press in- the 
colony. 

The social life was very simple, and all in- 
formal gatherings broke up by eight or nine 
o'clock. The arrival of a new governor was 
always considered an occasion for rejoicing, 
and the governor was welcomed with military 
salutes and a good dinner. 

The children of those days had a pretty 
liard time compared witli the children of to- 
day. They were brought up very strictly, 
were obliged to treat their parents with ex- 
aggerated respect, and the rules regarding their 
outdoor play were very severely enforced. If 
a child was found playing, running or shout- 
ing on the street dui'ing service on Sunday, his 
hat or coat was taken from him and not re- 
turned until his parents paid a tine. Usually 
the parents punished a child for causing them 
this trouljle and expense. It was considered 
scandalous for boys and gii'ls to slide down- 
hill on the jmblic streets. In Albany a bill 
was passed authorizing the police not oidy to 
take away the sleds of sliding children, but to 
break the sleds in i)ieces. It seems, howexer, 



COLONIAL LIFE IN THE EIGHTEENTH CENTURY 07 

tbat the boys, at least, managed to have some 
fuu. There are records of the complaints of a 
uight-watchman which state that the young- 
sters hid behind trees and frightened him by 
suddenly shouting out, " The Indians ! " Such 
a cry would not worry a watchman of to-day, 
but it carried terror to the heart at that time. 

When the English came into power they 
naturally wished English spoken in the schools 
instead of Dutch. Here is the plan of one 
schoolmaster' to accomplish this result : Each 
mornina: he carried to school a bit of metal 
which he gave to the first child he heard s})eak 
a Dutch word. The child kept the metal imtil 
some other child made the same mistake, when 
it was passed to this second offender. So it 
went from one little Dutchman to another all 
day. At night the poor unfortunate that had 
the metal was soundly whipped before leaving 
the school. 

During the fifty years from 1691 to 1741 a 
man who is known to every boy in New York 
State comes into the story of the colony. This 
man is Captain Kidd. For some time pirate 
ships had been so bold that they seized and 
plundered vessels within sight of the port of 
New York. The trade of the colony was 
greatly endangered by these marauders, al- 



08 THE STORY OF THE EMPIRE STATE 

though it was claimed tliat many of the leading 
men of the colony were in partnership with 
tliciii. Finally, the King of England, the gov^- 
ernor of New York, and several noblemen fitted 
out a ship which was to sweep the rohbers 
from the seas. The sliip was placed under the 
command of Captain Kidd. He sailed aw ay to 
put an end to pirates. For a while he met witli 
marked success, but before long he ran up the 
black flag on his own ship and became one of 
the most noted i)irates of his day. Two years 
from the time he started out he returned \vith 
great treasures of gold, silver, and jewels. 
These lie is supposed to have buried on Gard- 
ner's Island, where they have often been dug 
for since his death. From tliere he went to 
Boston and ap])eared on tlie streets as if lie had 
no idea he had done wi'ong. He was ai'rested, 
tried, sent to London and lianged. 

In the first lialf of the eighteenth century 
the New York colonisfs l)egan pushing farthei' 
west into the Indian tei-ritory and making set- 
tlements there. The traders went back and 
forth through the entire land of the People of 
the Long House, and in \7'2-2 l)uilt a storehouse 
on the present site of Oswego. 

Ten years later an event took jdace which 
was to make a great difference to all the Amer- 



COLONIxVL LIFE IN THE EIGHTEENTH CENTURY 69 

ican colonies. Way down in Virginia, on the 
22d of February, 1732, an American was born. 
He was to grow into a brave soldier and com- 
mand the troops of the united colonies ; was to 
develop into a true-hearted patriot, willing to 
leave his home and risk his life in the service of 
a young nation, and, later, he was to become a 
wise statesman, known as the Father of his 
Country, and the first President of the United 
States. This was George Washington. 



CHAPTER IX 

THE NEGRO PLOT 

Ever since the West India Company first 
broiiglit negroes to tlieir colony as slaves, this 
form of trade had l)eeu going on. At the be- 
ginning of the eighteenth century nearly every 
family of note liad one or more negro slaves. 
They \vere used as house servants for the most 
part ; were kindly treated, well clothed, and fed. 

As a rule, the slav^es were well-behaved, and 
history tells of no great misdemeanors on their 
part. Still the colonists seem to liave had a 
certain fear of them, and when in 1712 a New 
York house was burned and a family of white 
|)eo2)le was killed, tales began to s|)read of a 
conspiracy among the negroes. The talk re- 
sulted in nineteen negroes being punished by 
death on susjncion. 

Then new laws were made concerning slaves. 

If a slave was seen out after dark ^vithout a 

lighted lantern — by means of which track could 

be kept of him — he was put in prison and his 
70 



THE NEGRO PLOT 



71 



master fined. Whenever three 

seen together the authorities were sure mischief 

would come of it, and the person who discovered 

them was permitted by law 

to give them forty lashes 

across the bare back. 

And all the time more 
and more slaves were being 
imported, were being sold at 
the slave market, and were 
beino; taken into the homes 
of the colonists. And all 
the time the fear of a risino- 
among the slaves was grow- 
ing in the minds of the 
people. 

It is probable that this 
fear was often talked of while 
the ii relight cast dark shad- 
ows, and the wind outside howled on the bitter 
cold nights of a winter twenty-nine years after 
the first supposed conspiracy. Be that as it 
may, when the spring of 1741 came it found 
the colonists ready to believe anything they 
heard about the slaves. 

During that spring there were several small 
fires in New York within a few days. . Some 
were undoubtedly due to accident. Others 




Slave carrying lantern. 



72 



THE STOKY UF THE EMl'lUE STATE 



were possibly started l)\^ thieves for the sake 
of plunder. However, the I'uiiior was about at 
ouce that the negroes had riseu aud would burn 



v-^-^^ 

^i^>i^^ 




ExcitiriiT stories were told. 



the city and kill the citizens. Many aiTests 
were made. One hundred (h)]lars and freedom 
were offered to any negro, and five hinidred 
dollars to any white man, \\h»» would point out 



THE NEGRO PLOT 73 

those who had started the fires. To gain these 
rewards many wild stories were made up. 
Certain prisoners who were offered freedom 
for telling all they knew, also invented tales. 
People became panic-stricken. Each one tried 
to tell a bigger story than the one before. 
One man went so far as to pretend that he 
knew just what a negro had to do to become a 
member of the conspiracy. 

Excitement grew and terror prompted the 
doing of many cruel acts. Nearly two hundred 
slaves were arrested. Of these, seventy were 
transported, eighteen were hanged, and thirteen 
burned at the stake. Finally the people began 
to regain their senses, but they reached this 
point too late to save their colony from the 
disgrace of having dealt unjustly with the de- 
fenseless slaves. 

The riot pointed out to many of the colonists 
the disadvantages of slavery, and resulted to a 
certain extent in the employment of free white 
servants in the place of negro slaves. 



CHAPTER X 

THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR 

Twice since the death of Frontenac Eng- 
land and France had been at war. The Ameri- 
can colonies of these two countries had also 
taken up the struggles, V)ut neither of them had 
greatly affected the Province of New York. 

At length the time came when the Virginia 
colony claimed and undertook to settle a tract 
of land on the Ohio River. The Virginians 
found the French there before them. The 
French looked upon and treated the English 
colonists as intruders, so the governor of Vir- 
ginia sent a letter to the Frencli on the Ohio, 
stating his reason fol* claiming the land. He 
chose George Washington as the bearer of the 
letter. 

At this time Washington Avas a land sur- 
veyor, twenty-one years old. The joui-ney he 
was to make covered more than a thousand 
miles and lay through a dense wilderness. He 
and his few companions followed Indian trails 

74 



THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR 75 

wliich had never before been follo\ved by a 
white man. They were obliged to swim 
streams and overcome many difficulties, but at 
last the French commander was reached. He 
read the letter and replied that he knew noth- 
ing about the English claim and would do all 
in his power to drive every Englishman from 
the banks of the Ohio. 

Winter had now come. Still Washington 
felt that he must carry the message back to 
Virginia. He started. Soon the packhorses 
gave out. Undaunted, Washington and one 
faithful guide left their companions and con- 
tinued the Journey on foot. The weather was 
exceedingly cold, and dangers beset them on 
every side. But the brave young men pushed 
on, arrived home in safety and Washington 
delivered the French commander's messao-e. 

Then the English began to realize how the 
French had been reaching out. Little by little 
they had claimed new territory, fortified it, and 
gone on until they had a line of nearly sixty 
forts extending along the St. Lawrence, the 
Wabash, and the Mississippi to the Gulf of 
Mexico. Here were the English colonies shut 
in between the French and the Atlantic Ocean. 
And what was to j^revent the French fi'om 
carrying out their threat to drive the English 



70 THE STOKY OP TllK K.Ml'IKE STATE 

into the sea ? To discuss this great (juestioii, a 
congress was called to meet at Albany on June 
14, 1754. Representatives came from the four 
New England colonies, from Pennsylvania, and 
from Maryland. A plan for uniting the colo- 
nies was proposed, but met with little favoi-. 
The discussion led to no definite results. It 
did, however, bring home to the colonists the 
fact that war with the French would come 
])efore long, and that now was the time to 
prepare. 

The governor of New ^Oik proiii})tly set 
about putting the ])rovince in condition to 
\vithstand the storm. Money was raised for 
defenses, and the Assem])ly authorized the en- 
listment of men. 

In February, 1755, General Rra(hlock and 
a force of Eni»:lish soldiers l.iiidcd in America, 
and this same year the war known as the 
French and Indian War began. For three 
years it seemed as if the French and tlieir In- 
dian allies miii;ht succeed in defeatinu' the Eno;- 
lish colonists. During these years, and in fact 
during the entire war, a large part of the fight- 
ing took place in New York. England sent 
commanders and soldiers, but the commanders 
were unused to tlie Indian m(»(h' ol* warfare, 
and would not be advised by the colonists. 



THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR 77 

Attempt after attempt against the Freiu^li 
failed, while only a very few succeeded. 

The New York colonists were learninii; to 
dislike the haughty English commanders who 
refused to recognize the advantage of a long 
experience with the Indians, and who rated 
the highest provincial officers under the lowest 
regular officer. Then, too, there were three 
thousand English soldiers in the province, and 
the commanders demanded that the citizens 
should take these soldiers into theii' homes and 
provide for them without being paid. This 
could not but add to the growing dislike. On 
one occasion the mayor of Albany said to the 
English officers : " Go back again ; go back, for 
we can defend our province ourselves." 

In the fourth year of the war a New Eng- 
land captain and a small force of Americans 
asked permission to undertake an attack. It 
was reluctantly granted. Captain Bradstreet 
and his soldiers started at once and marched so 
rapidly across New York that they had ap- 
peared before the French Fort Frontenac on 
Lake Ontario by the time the French could be 
warned of their approach. The commander of 
the fort sent to Montreal for reenforcements, 
l)ut before help could arrive supplies gave out 
and he was obliged to surrender. 



IS 



THE STORY OP THE EMPIRE STATE 



Many lives liad been lost in unsuccessfnl 
attempts to drive the French from tlieir strong- 
holds, and even the campaigns in which the 
English had been victorions had not been fol- 
lowed nj), so this surrender without a blow to an 
American force was of the utmost importance. 
At last the formidal)le line of French forts was 
l)i*oken. The French King had stopped send- 
ing money or soldiers, and the French strength 
lay in being able to keep open the connnu- 

nication ])etween the 
forts. This break in 
the chain meant the 
cutting off of all forts 
in the west and south. 
All that was now left 
for the English to do 
was to conquer the 
Frencli in the St. Law- 
rence region, and tlie 
long struggle would l)e 
over. 

Enconraged by the 
fall of Fort Fi'ontenae, 
a systematic effort was made. Success folhnved 
success. In September, 1759, the English Gen- 
eral Wolfe conijuei-ed Quebec. Both General 
AVolfe and the French conunander, Montcalm, 




y^a^i^/i-^c^ /iytr^^ 



THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR 



79 




were killed in tlie battle. As Wolfe lay 
wounded he lieard the cry : " They run ! They 
run ! " He asked which side was retreating, and 
when told it was the French, he said : " Now 
God be praised ; I will die 
in peace." 

About the same time 
General Montcalm was told 
that he would die, and he 
exclaimed: "So much the 
better. I shall not live to see 
the surrender of Quebec." 

The battle of Quebec 
practically ended the war, 
but it was not until 1763 
that France formally signed 
over to England all her possessions east of the 
Mississippi and in Canada. She kept only two 
small islands in the Gulf of St. Lawrence, as a 
refuge for her fishermen. 

There was no longer any question of being 
driven into the sea. The New York colonists 
had now time to look over their province and 
see what the war had done for them. They 
found that they had learned to detest Eng- 
lish officers ; that they had a debt of one and 
a half million dollars ; that the enemy had 
swept over their borders, and had burned and 



(yfC^r^i&lh^ ^ 



80 Tim STORY OF THE E.MriRE STATE 

])illa2:e(l many farms and settlements. But 
^^()l'st of all, tbey found that many of the brave 
men who had left their homes to tight for the 
colony had not t'ome back. These were sad 
facts for the colonists to face, and yet on the 
other hand there were briirhter ])oints to con- 
sider. It was true that many had been killed, 
but even a gi'eater number had come home vic- 
torious, and those who had returned now went 
to work with a will to build up the land they 
had fought for and learned to love. Then, the 
New York soldiers had formed friendshi})s with 
the settlers of other colonies and had found 
that the cohmies could unite to defend their 
land from a common foe. They felt a secuiity 
never felt befort^ 

The war had necessitated mucli marching 
across the province, and on these long marches 
the colonists had seen for the tirst time all 
of the fertile and beautiful land about them. 
Forts had been built, and towns soon l)egau 
to grow up ar<mnd the foi'ts. Kome, Utica, 
and Niagara were started in this way. 

So it was that while the colonists lost much 
by the French and Indian AVar, they gained 
more than they lost. 

This was not ti'ue of the Peo])le of the Long 
House. They had fought and suffered with the 



THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR 



81 




colonists, and now, in return, they saw tliese 
same colonists taking possession of their land, 
and realized that they had been used merely as 
a defense for the homes of the intruding pale- 
faces. A story is told of an Indian's efforts to 
illustrate his views on this subject. He took a 
pair of scissors, pointed to one blade, and said : 
" This French." To the other, and said : " This 
English." Then, putting a piece of cloth be- 
tween the blades and cut- 
ting the cloth in two, he 
said : '' This Indian." 

However, the Indians 
had one powerful friend in 
the colony. William John- 
son had come to New York 
some years before the war. 
He had lived amono; the 
Indians, had learned their 
ways, and won their love. 
During the war he had 
fought loyally for the King, 
was knighted. With the title of Sir William, 
Johnson returned to the Mohawk Valley, bought 
great tracts of land from his Indian fi-iends, 
and became a most powerful peacemaker in all 
disputes between the colonists and the People 
of the Lono; House. 



^v/ 



t- 



Ik 



/ 




As a reward he 



CIIAPTEIi XI 

A TKIP TllKUUGll THE COLONY IN 1765 

Colonial l)()ys were expected to make a 
start in life at a mucli earlier age than the 
young men of to-day. Tlieiv were not many 
occupations to choose from, and when the time 
came for a young man to stand on his own feet 
he became either a farmer, a fisherman, a shop- 
keeper or a fur trader. The life of a fur trader 
was full of danger, and perha])s for that very 
reason, this industry was the one usually se- 
lected by a venturesome youth. 

From his home in some small town along 
the Mohawk such a youth would set out for 
the Indian territory to buy his furs with a 
package of beads and knives. Let us follow 
him on his trij). 

After two or three days' travel he comes to 
some frontier settlement consisting of a few 
scattered houses or cabins. No matter at which 
of these he stops he is gladly welcomed and 
treated with hospitality. IMany (piestions are 

82 



A TRIP THROUGH THE COLONY IN 1765 83 

. asked about the town from whicli he comes, 
aud he is pressed to tell all the colonial news 
he has heard as he traveled along. If he asks 
questions in his turn he is quite sure to discover 
that the reports of occasional visitors are the 
only means by which the lonely settlers catch 
a glimpse of town life. And as no one has 
visited the settlement for some time, these 
pioneers are naturally hungry to know some- 
thing of their friends in different parts of the 
colony. 

When night comes on, the young traveler is 
asked to stay until morning, and possibly the 
ready invitation gains in cordiality if his host 
sees that he is well armed. The fear of a sud- 
den attack by the Indians is always in the mind 
of the settler, and an armed man means added 
strength to repulse any onslaught which might 
come during the night. 

In the morning the youth continues his 
journey, and pushes on into the Indian terri- 
tory, buying furs whenever a good bargain 
offers until he has all that he can carry. With 
his pack, he now sets out for Albany, where he 
is to board a ship and sail down the Hudson to 
New York, and there sell his goods at a great 
profit. 

While waiting for the ship to sail, the youth 



8-i 



THE STUliY UK THE EMWKE STATE 



looks about Albany. He finds it the very cen- 
tei' of the fur trade. Eveu the dwellings have 
storerooms for furs on tlie second fioor. The 
people are simple and unaffected. They \\(»rk 
hard, and all other interests are so swallowed 
u[) in the making of their money and tlie 
taking of their comfort that they never realize 
how uneventful are their lives or how lackinii" 
is the town in social divei'sions. 

After a time the cargo is aboard, and our 
youth starts on his first trip down the Hudson. 
iSoon after leaving Albany the river flows 

through the great 
patroon estate of 
the Van Rensselaers, 
and the young trav- 
eler looks with in- 
terest at the manor- 
house of this influ- 
ential mend)erof the 
cohmy. As he sails 
along he passes other 
patroon estates. 
Possibly he is told 
by a fellow passen- 
ger liow the owners of these great tracts of 
land keep many slaves, and have almost com- 
plete power over every one living on theii' 




S;iilin.g-ve:ssel on the Hudson. 
Colonial period. 



A TRIP THROUGH THE COLONY IN 1765 85 

estates ; Low tliey spend only the summers 
here, going to New York for the winter ; and 
how they do their best to create a gay society 
in New York, copying all the customs of the 
English court. Perhaps the fellow traveler's 
father is a farmer on one of the estates, and he 
gives an account of the rent days, when the 
farmers j)ay their rents at some appointed 
place, and then gather at the manor-house to 
be feasted by the lord of the manor, as the 
patroons are called. Or he describes the court 
held on the estate once a year, where the 
patroon metes out justice and punishes offenders 
according to his own ideas of their deserts. 

So the time is whiled away until the first 
sight of New York appears in the distance, and 
the youth's heart beats faster as he slowly ap- 
proaches the renowned capital of the province. 
Once ashore, he wanders along the uneven pave- 
ments, which, it is said, give the citizens so pe- 
culiar a walk that it is possible to recognize a 
New Yorker by that alone. Having at last dis- 
posed of his furs to his satisfaction, the trader 
has time to look about him and observe the life 
in New York. 

There are four classes of society. The lords 
and ladies of the manors and those persons in 
high official positions compose the upper class. 



86 



THE STOKY OF THE EMPIRE STATE 



They dress in silks uiul velvets, and the iiieu 
wear wigs and carry swords. A bi'oadcloth 
coat with spreading skii'ts and Avide cult's slio\vs 
the wearer to be a rich tradesman ; while the 




People of New York in Colonial jicriod. 

shopkeeper wears homes] )uii, and the Wdikiiian 
is content to take his ])leasure in the leather 
apron of his workaday life. 

The pleasures, too, differ for tlie different 
classes. The bewigged gentlemen and their 
ladies attend balls and concerts, or have sleigli- 
rides to some country tavern, or fishing parties 
and picnics, according to the season. The work- 
inoj classes have the fjood sense to close the 
shops at an early hour and spend theii' evenings 
in some simple pastimes. On the King's birth- 
day or other holiday tliey crowd to the common 
to watch the great bonfires, and take part in the 



A TRIP THROUGH THE COLONY IN 1765 87 

feast prepared at the city's expense. During 
the year there are exhibitions of fireworks, bull- 
baiting contests, and a variety of other public 
entertainments. 

At the time of an election there is much 
excitement and strong feeling. The candidates 
give up all other business, and keep open house 
for a week before the election. When that day 
arrives the factions form themselves into bands, 
and go from house to house demanding votes 
for their representatives. 

Party feeling is growing, and many young 
men join the Whig club. This organization is 
opposed to the government ; swears hatred to 
kings, and drinks toasts to the liberal-minded 
men of the times. In opposition is the Tory 
party, stanch defenders of the King, consisting 
of the English officials and the wealthy Dutch 
merchants. Between these two extremes are the 
people, desiring only peace, and never dreaming 
of the possibility of breaking away from Brit- 
ish rule. And working for the people's inter- 
ests are a few clear thinkers, who are constantly 
striving to uphold the rights of the province 
and prevent the colonists from being taxed 
against their will. 



ClfAPTErt XII 

THE S T A M V A C T 

All miii'lit liave irone well ^vitll the Enirlisli 
colonies in America wlieu once the fear of tlie 
French was taken away by the happy outcome 
of the French and Indian War, had it not 
been that iust as the fiii'litinii' was over Georo-e 
III became King of England. Among the 
possessions which came to him with the throne 
were the colonies along the eastern coast of 
America, AV^as it not natural that he should 
inquire into their condition and ]iros])ects? He 
I'oiuid that the colonies were rich in such valu- 
able materials as lund)ei', iron, and furs; that 
these materials were gradually being manufac- 
tured into such forms as would make them of 
use to the colonists, and that slii[)s were being 
built which were sent to carry on with the 
West Indies, France, and Spain a trade which 
brought the colonists large sums of money. 

It seemed to the King only right tliat the 

colonies should, by sharing their profits with 
88 



THE STAMP ACT 89 

the mother coimtry, furnisli him enough money 
for the salaries of his American governors, and 
help pay the debt resulting from England's war 
with France. To this end the King set about 
trying to enforce what were known as the " Nav- 
igation Acts." According to the requirements 
of these acts the American colonies could trade 
only with England and her possessions; all 
commerce was to be carried on in English 
ships ; and all materials were to be sent to Eng- 
land, that English workmen might make them 
into cloth, pots, kettles, chairs, tables, barrels, 
wagons, and the like. As the colonists needed 
these articles and w^ere not allowed to manu- 
facture, it followed that the only course open 
was to buy them from the English at the price 
the English manufacturers saw fit to put on 
them. 

The cutting oif of trade with all but Eng- 
land natui'ally did much toward putting an 
end to business in the colonies. And as the 
merchants saw no way out of their trouble they 
began to smuggle goods and hide them in their 
houses. To prevent the smuggling, " Writs of 
Assistance " were sent out Avhich 2:ave Ensflish 
officers the power to search any house where 
they suspected goods might be concealed. The 
officers ^vere insolent and rude. Still the col- 



90 



THE STORY OP THE EMPIRE STA'l'E 



onists (lid no Tiiore than send appeal after a]v 
peal to England, stating their wrongs, and re- 
peating their claims for more generous treat- 
ment. 

In the spring of 1765 England attempted to 
turn still more of the colonists' money into her 
coffers by passing a law called the Stamj) Act. 
Stamps were issued varying in value all the 
way from three cents to thirty dollars. The 
colonists were informed that 
the hnv would be put in prac- 
tise on the 1st of November, 
1 765, and that after that date 
if they wished to make a 
will, take out an insurance 
])olicy or mortgage, get a nuir- 
riage license, or do any busi- 
ness requiring legal pa])ers, a 
stamp of pro])er value must 
be V)ought for each and every pa})er. All ad- 
vertisements were subject to the Stain] > Act, 
and before a man coidd read his news])ai)er he 
nuist })ay for the stamp u})on it. 

This was more than the colonists could en- 
dure. Indignation ran high. The j^ipers 2)ul)- 
lished articles questioning England's authority. 
Men were seen talking excitedly in groups, or 
parading the sti'cets with copies of ihe Stamp 




A coloniiil stamp. 



THE STAMP ACT 91 

Act headed with the words "The Folly of 
England and the liuin of America." 

An organization known as the Sons of Lib- 
erty suggested that committees of correspond- 
ence be ajjpointed in all the colonies. By 
means of the letters sent back and forth be- 
tween these committees, the colonies learned 
that the feeling of revolt was general. Massa- 
chusetts proposed that representatives of the 
different colonies meet in New York to decide 
upon a course of action. Nine of the thirteen 
colonies sent representatives, and the four who 
did not, expressed their concurrence in all that 
the con2;ress should do. The meeting: was in 
October.. During the two weeks that it lasted 
the colonial representatives adopted a Declara- 
tion of Rights, prepared for Parliament a plain 
statement of the situation as they saw it, and 
wrote a respectful petition to the King. 

Aside from this united effort to better af- 
fairs the people of the different colonies showed 
their displeasure as best they could. In New 
York the man aj^pointed as stamp distributor 
became so frightened by the manifestations of 
opposition in the city that he refused to receive 
the stamps when they arrived from England. 
The governoi' took them and locked the stamps 
and himself in the fort. 



92 THE STORY OF THE EMPIRE STATE 

Wlien November 1 daAvned — that day on 
wliicli tlie act was to be put in foi'ce — it found 
no l)usiness stn- in New York. All shops were 
closetl ; all flags were at half-mast, and here and 
there was posted a bill wliich read-^ 

Vno PATRIA. 

The first man that eithor (listri])utes or makes use 
of stam})ed paper h't him take care of liis liouse, per- 
son, and effects. 

We dare. 

As the day woi'e on, a pai'ty of incu marched 
to the Bowling Green, erected a gaHows, and 
lumg upon it a likeness of tlie governor and 
another of England's ])rime minister. A second 
band appeared ])efore tlie fort with an effigy of 
the governor. These men demanded the stamps. 
Being refused, they burst o])en the stables, 
dragged out the governor's coach, placed the 
effigy in it, and btirned both figure and conch. 
Then off they went to the house of Major 
James, an English officer who liad threatened 
to "cram the stamps down the throats of the 
])eo])le with the end of his sword.'' To reward 
the major for tliis speech his house was burned 
to the ground. 

Such ]»roc<'e(lings convinced the governor 
that it would not be wise to try to force the 




A view of Bowline; Green at the lower end of Broadway in 1900. 
In the foreground, where the excavations for the new Cus- 
tom-ITouse are shown, is the site of Fort Amsterdam. 



THE STAMP ACT 93 

Stamp Act, so he gave up tlie stamps to the 
mayor of the city on condition that all that 
were lost or destroyed should be paid for. 

The real remedy for the trouble, however, 
was brought about by the New York mer- 
chants. They held a great meeting and pledged 
themselves to buy no goods from England until 
the Stamp Act should be removed. Of course 
this step meant business ruin, but the mer- 
chants were patriots and resolved to bravely 
face personal disaster I'ather than see their 
country submit to unjust taxation. The citi- 
zens heartily agreed to do their part and give 
up all luxuries that must come from England. 
Orders for English goods were canceled, silks 
and velvets were replaced by rough homespun, 
and rich and [)oor alike settled down to make 
the most of what their own country c<nild fur- 
nish them. 

The resolve of the Ne^v York merchants 
was taken up by the merchants of the other 
colonies, and English vessels found no one to 
buy when they sailed into American ports 
loaded with such goods as had always been 
readily purchased at the Englishman's price. 

The check thus put on England's trade was 
felt at once, and the English merchants joined 
their plea to that of the colonies for the repeal 



94 THE STORY (»F THE EMPIRE STATE 

of tlie hated IStainp Act. Finally, in May, 17()6, 
came the news that the i'e[)eal was granted 
Picture the i-ej<)icins»: ! Cannons tlumdered, 
})ells rang, feasts were prepared, and bonfires 
hlazed. 

The Kinii" had conceded to the wish of his 
colonies, and the cry of " Long live the King ! " 
went u]) from every colony from New England 
to Georgia. The King's birthday was observed 
in New York with much ado that year. A lib- 
ei'ty-[)()le was put uj) in the " fields,''' and later 
in the sunnner it was voted to erect an eques- 
trian statue to " His (Iracious Majesty, King 
Geon-'e tlie Third." 



CHAPTEK XIII 

TAXATION AND COLONIAL OPPOSITION 

The colonists iiiight have known from ex- 
perience that England was not the country to 
quietly give up what she considered her light. 
And so it j^roved. It was true that the Stamp 
Act had been repealed, but with the repeal had 
come unnoticed a declaration that England had 
the right to " bind the colonies in all cases what- 
soever." 

The colonists had gained their point in the 
repeal. England had had the last word by de- 
claring her authority to do what she thought 
best with her possessions. Here was a chance 
for satisfaction on both sides, and for peace be- 
t^veen the colonies and their mother country. 
But the loyal celebration of the King's birthday 
was hardly passed when new troul)le began. 

From the time of the French and Indian 
War a British army had been stationed in 
America with headquarters in New York. No\v, 
the governor made an unwelcome announcement 

95 



96 THE STORY OF THE EMPIRE STATE 

to the New York Assembly. He said tluit lie 
daily expected the arrival of more troops, and 
that the Kiug required the colonists to sii])j)ly 
(piarters, bedding, firewood, candles, soap, and 
drink for the soldiers. The Assembly's rej^ly 
was short. New York did not need more 
soldiers, and therefore would not provide for 
more. The King was t(dd of the refnsal to do 
as he directed, and he promptly forbade the 
New York Assend^ly to pass any law until it 
cons(Mited to care for his soldiers. This was 
bad ! 

Soon worse news came. Duties were placed 
upon paper, glass, tea, and painters' colors. In 
this way England decided to show the colonists 
that she meant what she had said about her 
I'ight to tax them. At once the colonists set 
out to let England know that they were as de- 
teniiined as she \vas, and \vould not l)e taxed 
without their consent. Once more American 
merchants agreed to buy no British goods. 
And again Elnglish ships came to America and 
found no <me to take their cargoes. 

The days which followed were not hajtpy 
ones in New York. Business ruin threatened 
the merchants. Tlie old inde])en(U'nt Assembly 
was replaced by a new one wliicli Noted money 
to quarter the unNvelcome so K Hers. 



TAXATION AND COLONIAL OPPOSITION 97 

The soldiers themselves were insolent and 
overbearing. From time to time they pulled 
down the liberty-pole, but it was always put 
up again by the Sons of Liberty. At length, 
in January, 1770, a crowd of soldiers started 
out at midnight, cut this symbol of liberty into 
pieces, and piled them before the headquarters 
of the Sons of Liberty. The people were so 
angry that they held a meeting and resolved 
that any soldier found on the streets at night 
should be treated as an enemy of the city. A 
few nights later a party of soldiers were caught 
putting up bills which ridiculed the Sons of 
Liberty. These soldiers were seized. As they 
were being taken to the mayor other soldiers 
appeared, and tried to rescue the offenders. 
Then other Sons of Liberty came upon the 
scene and a o-eneral fia-ht was the result. Here 
was shed the first blood of the coming revolu- 
tion. 

In this same year (1770) word came that the 
merchants had partially succeeded in forcing 
England to give in. The duty was taken oif 
glass, paper, and colors. But the tax on tea re- 
mained. What was to be done ? Many of the 
colonies thought that no goods of any sort 
should be received until the duty ^vas removed 
from tea as well. But these colonies had never 



08 



THE STUKY OF THE EMPIRE STATE 



carried on so extensive a trade as New" York. 
CV>nse(|ueutly they had not suffered as sevei-ely 
from the loss of their trade. In New Yoi'k it 
was voted to receive all goods with the single 




1 1 CIV was shed the first blood of the coming revolution. 

('xcej)ti(>n of tea. Letters were sent to tlie 
other colonies telling of New York\s deci- 
sion. In Boston tlie letter was scornfully torn 
to bits. Students at l*rinceton l)ui-iied tlie 
one sent them on their camjms ; and from Phil- 
adel[)hia came the message, "Send us your old 
liberty-pole, as you can have no fintlier use 
for it.'' 

Tlie Euii'lish tea l)usiness was at a standstill. 



TAXATION AND COLONIAL OPPOSITION 99 

Aud yet England would not give up tliat one 
little tax. In 1773 she took a step which 
plainly showed how little she understood the 
determination of her American colonies. It 
was decided to so reduce the price of tea that, 
even after paying the tax, the colonists would 
still be giving less a pound than before the 
duty was declared. England felt perfectly 
sui'e that in this way she could sell her tea 
without the colonists noticing the tax. She 
was so very sure that great ship-loads were 
sent to Boston, Philadelphia, Charleston, and 
New York. 

Now it was not the price of the tea that 
had bothered the colonists. They had said 
they would not be taxed, and they meant it. 

The first ship-load of tea to arrive entered 
Boston harbor. There the citizens, dressed as 
Indians, boarded the ship and threw three hun- 
dred and forty-three chests of tea into the sea. 
It was early the next year before the Nancy 
appeared off Sandy Hook. She never reached 
her dock. The captain was allowed to go 
ashore alone, and while there he became so 
fully convinced that it would be impossible to 
land even one chest without serious trouble 
that he wisely consented to return to England, 
not attempting to find a market for the tea. 

8 



loo THE STORY OF THK KMPIRK STATE 

Pliihitlelpliia seut home in the same way the 
sliip which came to her port. lu (yharlestoii 
the tea Avas landed, but no one would hny a 
siui^le ])(>und, and it finally spoik'd from being 
stored in damp cellars. 

England was amazed. Her next plan was 
to subdue one colony at a time As Massachu- 
setts had beeu the only oue to wilfully destroy 
the tea, she was naturally the first to be pun- 
ished. The port of Boston was closed; soldiers 
were sent to enforce the Port Bill, as it was 
called, and all business in Boston was stoi)[)ed. 
The other colonies synij)athized with Massachu- 
setts, and sent provisions and such necessities as 
could be gathered together. 

In Septendjer, 1774, the First Continental 
Congress met in Philadel})hia. Eleven colonies 
were re[)resented. They resolved that, ccmie 
what might, they would stand by Massachusetts 
in her trouble. 

The Sons of Liberty called for a general 
meeting, to take [)lace in the ''fields "of New 
York on July (>. (Ireat crowds came. Alex- 
ander Hamilton, a seventeen-year-old boy, was 
one of those ^vho addressed the people. His 
speech was so earnest, and so stirred the feel- 
ings of his hearers, that they were inspired to 
pass resolutions against the Boston Port Bill, 



TAXATION AND COLONIAL OPPOSITION lOl 

and to raise sums of inouey for the sutierers in 
Massachusetts. 

However, New York still had the Assembly 
which had voted, against the people's wish, to 
care for the British soldiers. The Assembly also 
refused to indorse the action taken by the Con- 
tinental Congress. Owing to this stand taken 
by New York's Assembly, the King came to be- 
lieve that in case of further trouble in America, 
New York would remain a loyal British prov- 
ince. How little he appreciated what was in 
the minds of the colonists ! In a few short 
months he was to learn that the people of New 
York could rise above their governor and theii' 
Assembly, and could stand stanch and true 
among the very first of the colonies in their 
united struggle for liberty. 



CHAPTER XIV 

HAPPENINGS IN NEW YOKK AT THE BEGINNING 
OF THE KEVOLUTION 

Apkil 22, in the year 1775, came on Sunday. 
As usual the farmers from about New Yoi'k 
rode into the city on horseback witli theii- wives 
sitting behind them, Tliey had come to cluircli. 
Along tlie streets quietly walked the peo2)le of 
the city on their \vay to service. 

Suddenly a great clatter was Ix'ard, and a 
rider flew by at bi'eakneck s]ieed. As he ])assed 
he called out: "The Massachusetts volunteers 
have fought two battles with the l^ritish. To 
arms!" Church was forgotten in an instant. 
Crowds gathered at every corner. Almost be- 
foi'e the flying horseman had disappeared the 
New Yorkers were discussing the event and 
telling each other that war with England had 
come at last. It was evident that they intiMided 
to take part in the conflict. Twcnly-foui- hours 
later vohmteer c()m])anies coidd be seen forming 
in tlie streets. Two sliij)-loads of })rovisions for 

103 



AT THE BEGINNING OP THE REVOLUTION 103 

the Britisli troops in Boston were seized before 
they could leave New York harbor, and a letter 
was sent to Boston pledging the help of New 
York in the struggle. 

In the present State of Vermont was a band 
of men known as the Green Mountain Boys. 
The band had been formed to prevent New 
York from enforcing a claim to certain lands 
east of Lake Champlain — the home of the Green 
Mountain Boys. They had been declared out- 
laws, and rewards had been offered for their 
arrest. Now the news of war put an end to 
all differences between the colonies, and the 
Green Mountain Boys, with Ethan Allen as 
their leader, prepared to do all in their power in 
defense of provincial rights. 

George III had ordered the forts at Ticon- 
deroga and Crown Point garrisoned. Very 
early on the morning of May 10 a great shout 
awoke the English commander at Ticonderoga. 
Imagine his amazement on seeing Ethan Allen 
and his Green Mountain Boys drawn up on the 
pai-ade-ground of his own fort ! They had come 
in the night, surprised the sleepy sentinels, and 
entered the fort without resistance. 

On seeing the commander, Allen shouted, 
"Come out here and surrender your garri- 



104 



THE STORY OF THE EMPIRE STATE 



" By what authority ? " answered the eoui- 
maiider, 

" In the name of the Great Jehovah and the 
Continental Congress," came tlie reply. 

The garrison sur- 
rendered. Crown 
Point too ^vas taken 
by these brave (rreen 
Mountain Boys, 

On the veiy day 
Ticonderoga fell the 
Continental Con- 
gress met again in 
Philadelphia. The 
colonial I'epresenta- 
tives had come to 

question as to what 
should be done now that fighting had actually 
l)egun. It seems hardly ])ossi])le that even now 
they should have considered themselves merely 
in the light of Englisli subjects, but that was 
the case. They felt the King's injustice and 
they resented it, but that he was their King 
and would continue to be their King they 
nev^er questioned. After much discussion a 
petition was drawn up telling the King once 
more how his American subjects felt over the 




AT THE BEGINNING OF THE REVOLUTION 105 

injustice shown them, and again asking that 
the grievances be removed. The petition was 
approved by Congress. 

Then the representatives j)lanned a course 
to follow until the King's answer should 
come. It was plain that if there was to be 
fighting there must be some one at the head of 
the troops who had sound common sense, who 
was brave and loyal, and who would give the 
country a whole-souled devotion. The repre- 
sentatives had among them Just such a man. 
When George Washington was proposed for 
commander-in-chief of the Continental Army 
there was not one voice i-aised against him. 
He was unanimously elected. 

All summer the representatives waited for 
the answer to their petition. In October it 
came. The King would not withdraw one of his 
demands and ^vould accept nothing but submis- 
sion and obedience from his American colonies. 
Such a reply alone would have put an end to all 
hope of peace. But as if this was not enough, 
with the message came the news that George 
III had hired German troops to cross the ocean 
and subdue the rebellious colonies. Such ac- 
tions forced the representatives to regard the 
King as an enemy, and a very determined one at 
that. 



10^ TIIR STORY OF THE EMPIRE STATE 

At ouce a plan was afoot to drive the Brit- 
ish from Canada before more troo]).s eonhl ar- 
rive and reenforce the stronghokln tliere. Gen- 
erals Schuyler and Montgomery of New York 
\vere in command of the northern forts of our 
State. To Montgomery was entrusted the Ca- 
nadian campaign. He con([uered Montreal and 
pushed on to join Benedict Arnold at Quebec. 
A daring attack on that city was planned, but 
in the seeming moment of success Montgomery 
was shot down. His disheartened soldiei's were 
soon driven back and the Canadian campaign of 
1775 came to an end. 

The year 1776 found Ne^v York in a most 
unfortunate conditi(m. Failure to drive the Eng- 
lish from the Canadian forts left the northern 
frontier of New York open to invasion from that 
direction. The Tory party, headed by the Eng- 
lish governor, was doing all in its power to harm 
the colonial cause. The friendly Indians of 
former days had l)een influenced by the sons of 
Sir William Johnson to side witli the English, 
and tliey were only waitinu' for an o))])ortiiiiity 
to swoop down upon the exposed settlements 
of western New York. 

In March came added trouble. Wasliington 
had driven the Englisli under (Jciicral Howe 
from Boston. Iiimiediatelv he sent word that 



AT THE BEGINNING OP THE REVOLUTION 107 

New York would undoubtedly be their next 
point of attack. At once the city began prep- 
arations. Farmers formed into companies, pow- 
der was made and fortifications were thrown up. 
Washington came with his troops and the city 
was turned into a veritable camp. 

While the patriots were bending every energy 
to build up the defenses of the city, the Tories 
were doing their best to interrupt the work. 
Tlie governor had deserted the city. From a 
British ship in the harbor he now directed a 
plot against Washington. A member of Wash- 
ington's own Life Guard was bribed to kill him. 
The guard, knowing that the commander-in- 
chief was fond of green peas, poisoned a dish- 
ful which was to be served to Washington. 
Washington was warned by a faithful cook and 
the plot came to nothing. The guard was hung. 

As the months went by the idea of cutting 
all ties with the mother country had gained favor 
throughout the colonies. In the spring of 1776 
the Continental Congress met at Philadelphia to 
take the final step toward independence. Robert 
R. Livingston of New York, ^vdth four others, 
was appointed to draw up the Declaration of 
Lidependence. On July 2 the paper was 
finished and submitted to Congress. On the 
4th of July, 1776, the Continental Congress of 



108 



THE STOiiY OK TUK EMPIRE STATE 






America adopted tlie Declaration of Indepeud- 
euce. 

Five days later the news I'eaclied New 
York. It was received with the wildest joy. 
A portrait of George III 
was taken from the wall 
of the City Hall, torn into 
strips, and trampled under 
f < )ot. T] le equestrian statue 
put up after tlie repeal of 
the Stamp Act was ])ulled 
down and melted into bul- 
lets to be shot at the King's 
hired soldiers. The Dec- 
laration Avas read to the 
troo})s in A\'ashingtonV 
cam]i, and the soldiers readied with shouts of 
api)lause. Tliere could be no doubt, from the 
reception given the Declaration of Inde])end- 
ence, that New York had amimg her citizens 
hundreds of jiatriots Avho were ready to sacri- 
fice everything for the good of theii* country. 




CHAPTEK XV 



CAMPAIGN IN THE VICINITY OF NEW YORK 



On July 12, General Howe's fleet appeared 
off Staten Island as was expected. A flag of 
truce was shown by the 
English, and a messenger 
bearing a letter came 
ashore. The address read 
" George Washington, Esq." 
The title Es(piire did not 
recognize Washington as 
commander-in-chief, but 
merely as a landholder and 
citizen. Now Washington 
did not wish to receive let- 
ters from the King's repre- 
sentatives except in his 
oflicial position, so the mes- 
senger was told that no person with that ad- 
dress could be found in the camp. 

" By what title should Washington be ad- 
dressed ? " asked the messenger. 

109 




110 



THE STORY OF THE EMPIRE STATE 



Tlie officer re2)lied, " Are you aware, sir, of 
tlie rank of General Washington in our army ? " 
There was nothing more to be said, and the 
messenger went back to the English shi})s, 

A week later another letter w^as sent. This 
time tlie address read "George Washington, 
Es(j., etc., etc." The bearer begged to see 
Washington. An interview was granted. 

When the letter was presented the messen- 
ger exi)lained, " May it please your Excellency, 
the et ceteras after your name mean everything." 
"Indeed,*" replied Washington, smiling, 
" they might mean any- 
thing." 

As he still refused to 
accept the letter — believ- 
ing he was not the one 
to make terms — the mes- 
senger told \vhat it con- 
tained. "Lord Howe, 
brother of General Ilowe, 
is conmiissioned to state 
that all persons wlio w ill 
lay down their arms and 
help restore peace be- 
tween King George and his colonies shall be 
graciously | )ardone(l," 

Receiving no answer from Washington, 




CAMPAIGN IN THE VICINITY OF NEW YORK 111 

General Howe's representative asked, " What 
message will you send Lord Howe ? " 

" Nothing but my particular compliments," 
said Washington. 

The news of this attempt at reconciliation 
was published throughout the countiy. One 
true American voiced the general feeling by 
saying : " No doubt we all need pardon from 
Heaven, but the American who needs pardon 
from his Britannic Majesty is yet to be found." 

Nothing could now be expected but war. 
In the bay was General Howe with his British 
tieet and twenty -five thousand fully equipped 
and well-trained men. They had crossed the 
ocean to subdue the King's rebellious colonies 
as quickly as possible. In New York city was 
Washington with eighteen thousand raw re- 
cruits, but these raw recruits possessed libei'ty- 
loving hearts, and each was ready to spend a life- 
time if necessary in driving away the disciplined 
soldiers of George HI. How was it to be 
done? That was the question confronting 
"Washington during the month and a half in 
which Howe waited in the harbor before be- 
ginning his attack. To defeat the English with 
such great advantage in their favor was impossi- 
ble. All the American commander could hope 
to do was to hold them where they were. To this 



112 



THE STORY OF THE EMPIRE STATE 



end half liis force was scattered so as to garri- 
son the various forts on Manhattan Island and 
the points which lay most open to attack. The 



?ii;W YORK 

AND VICINITY 

177(; 




.1 T L A A' TIC OCEAN 



other nine thousand men were sent to Long 
Island to occupy Brooklyn Heights. 

When General Howe learned of the distri- 
bution of Washington's army, he wisely de- 
cided that all he needed to do was to destroy 
one half of the little army, and the other half 
would be more ready to listen to terms. Sure- 
ly if he sent nearly all his troops against 



CAMPAIGN IN THE VICINITY OF NEW YORK 113 

Brooklyn Heiglits it would be a simple mat- 
ter to force surrender at that point. This 
he did. Twenty thousand British soldiers 
landed on Long Island. There was nothing to 
hinder an advance. The Americans were too 
few in number, and the people of that neigh- 
borhood were in sympathy with England. On 
came the King's troops. August 27 was spent 
in surrounding the two American outposts. 
After stubborn lighting the brave officers in 
command of one of these posts wei'e obliged to 
surrender, and those in charge of the other 
merely succeeded in lighting a way back to 
Brooklyn Heights. 

Howe had now but to capture the fortifica- 
tions on the Heights. He gathered his troops 
tosrether. Nis-ht had come on. The men were 
tired after the day's long march and the fight- 
ing, so all thought of attack was put olf until 
morning, and the men slept. 

In the evening Washington came by boat 
from New York, and prepared the fortifica- 
tions as best he could to withstand the coming 
battle. More troops were brought from the 
city until there were ten thousand men to face 
England's twenty thousand. 

To Washington's surpi'ise, he learned next 
day that Howe thought discretion the better 



114 TIIK STORY OF THE EMPIRE STATE 

part of valor, and that in ])lace of cliargiiiii- up 
the hill and taking the woi'ks, he would be con- 
tent to starve out his enemy by laying siege. 
Here was danger indeed for the small and 
poorly supplied force within the fortifications. 
The English troops cut off all chance of ad- 
vance, and at any hour the fleet might sail into 
the ri\'er between the Heisrhts and New York, 
making escape impossible. There was only one 
thing to do. Trusty messengers were sent back 
to New York to collect Ijoats of every kind 
and descri[)tion that could be had. That night 
the boats were brought to the Brooklyn side. 
Then, when all was dark, began the (piiet, or- 
derly, but difficult ferrying of the troops back 
to New York. Trip after trip w^as made, until 
men, cannon, ammunition, arms, and suj)plies 
were all safely landed in New York. Last of 
all, AVashington himself left the deserted forti- 
fications on Brooklyn Heights. 

The British had not heard a sound. A\'hcn 
the sun rose, they were surprised to see no 
signs of life where the busy Americans had 
been the day before. They cliinbetl the hill to 
learn the cause of the (juiet. Picture their sur- 
prise on finding the works empty ! 

Once more Lord Howe attem])ted to restore 
peace, but, as before, England had nothing to 



CAMPAIGN IN THE VICINITY OF NEW YORK 115 







offer wliicli would take the place of the inde- 
peudence daily growiug dearer to the American 
heart. 

On September 15, Lord Howe transferred 
part of his army to New York. Washington 
had stationed his army 
alono; the Harlem liiver, 
leaving a detachment nn- 
der Putnam in the city. 
How easy it would have 
been for Howe to have 
prevented Putnam and 
his men from joining 
Washington ! Doubtless 
this would have been 
done but for Mrs. Lind- 
ley Murray. She invited 
the English general and his officers to lunch 
with her. By her gracious manner and good 
cheer she kept them so well entertained that 
Putnam and his command slipped quietly by 
within half a mile and joined Washington in 
safety. 

Now came a hard-fought retreat. Wash- 
ington attempted to make determined stands at 
Fort Washington, White Plains, and other 
posts along the lower Hudson. But owing to 

the insubordination of officers and the fact that 
9 



^^^-y^ ^^pC/nic, 



11(] 



THE STUllY OF THE EMPIRE STATE 



he was ol)lige(l to build up his army as lie weut 
aloug, drilling, feeding, and caring for them as 
best he could, he was unable to hold these 
posts, and slowly drew back into New Jersey. 

On one occasion during this retreat he par- 
ticularly desired to know something of Howe's 

plans. Kathan Hale, 
a daring young Mas- 
sachusetts captain, 
twenty-one yeai's old, 
vohniteered to Ining 
him the information. 
Disguised as a country 
school-teacher, Nathan 
Hale went into Con- 
necticut. From there 
he crossed to Long Is- 
land and visited the 
English camp at that 
point. By looking 
about and asking ques- 
tions, he found out 
what Wasliington 
All went well. Hale was 
on his way l)ack, and no one had recognized 
him. As he was nearing the American lines a 
Tory relative betrayed liim. He A\'as seized. 
When taken before General Ho\ve he frankly 




wished to know. 



CAMPAIGN IN THE VICINITY OP NEW YORK 117 

admitted being au American officer. Howe 
sentenced him to death. His request for a 
Bible was refused, and his letter to his mother 
was burned. The next morning he was led 
out to be hanged. 

Standing at the foot of the gallows he said, 
" I only regret that I have but one life to give 
to my country." 

The close of 1776 found Washington's 
troops discouraged and disheartened. The out- 
look was dark. Then, on Christmas night, 
Washington captured one thousand of the 
King's hired Hessians and killed their leader 
in the battle of Trenton. The effect was elec- 
trical. The troops took heart ; patriotism was 
rekindled, and General Howe came to realize 
that it meant business if he were to succeed in 
uprooting the idea of independence from the 
American colonies. 



CHAPTER XVI 



BURGOYNES CAMPAIGN 



M()T{E tliaii two years had ])assed since the 
Kiiiii"'s attein})t to subdue Massachusetts by 
closino' lier |)oi'ts, and still the colonies were 
holding their own, with no signs of accepting 
the King's point of view. It was high time to 
put an end to the struggle. The Englisli offi- 
cials looked over the situation. They found 
the New England colonies strong in their de- 
termination to resist Englisli rule. The same 
was true of the Southern colonies. New York 
lay between, with her many Tories and disaf- 
fected Indians. What would be sim])ler than 
to send one foive up tlie Hudson from New 
York city, and another from Canada down the 
Hudson, to meet in Albany 'i Thus New Eng- 
land would be separated from the southern 
colonies, and surely, with the union broken, the 
end of resistance would soon come. This plan 
was ado])ted. 

118 



BURGOYNE'S CAMPAIGN 



119 



General Burgoyne went to Canada and raised 
a great army, ready to advance from the north. 
So free from danger did the advance seem that 
several of the officers allowed their wives to 
accompany them, 
in order to enjoy 
the trip through 
the State. 

In New York, 
General Howe 
prepared to start 
north when the 
time should come 
and take all tlie 
American forts 
along the river 
between that city 
and Albany. 

To make as- 
surance double 
sure, a third force 
under Colonel St, 
Leger was to go 
up the St. Law- 
rence to Lake Ontario, and, landing at Oswego, 
was to be joined by Tory sympathizers and 
four tribes of Indians, These allies were to 
take possession of the Mohawk Valley and join 




120 THE STORY OF THE EMPIIJE STATE 

Burgoyne and Ho^ve at Albany. So much for 
the English plan. 

The first fort to be attacked was Ticonder- 
oga. The Americans had done all in theii" 
power to build up the defenses of the fort, but 
when Burgoyne's army appeared on July 1, 
1777, there were only three thousand men to 
face the great British force. The three thousand 
waited for the attack, relying on the strength 
of tlie fort to offset the disadvantao-e in num 
ber.s. The second of July ])assed, then the third 
and fourth. Still the English made no move. 
On the morning of tlie fifth the rising sun showed 
the Americans a dismaying sight. Just south of 
Ticonderoga rose a crag six hundred feet high, 
and on the top of the crag were seen the red 
coats of British soldiers and the glint of brass 
cannon. In another day the cannon would be 
in position to poui' a deadly fire right into the 
fort, turning it into a mere death-trap. There 
was no time to wonder how or when the Eng- 
lish had clindjed the stee[) side of the crag. 
The only hope was to get out, if possilde, with 
out being seen. That night the American force 
slipped away from the foit, and one week after 
lea\ino: Ticonderoo-a they reached Fort Edward, 
where they f(^und General Schuyler. 

Burgoyne left part of his force to garrison 



BURGOYNB'S CAMPAIGN 



121 




the deserted fort, and advanced to the head of 
Lake Champlain. His officers were so elated 
over their easy victory 
that they made wagers 
on the nund^er of days 
it would take to reach 
Albany. Such exagger- 
ated reports of the 
affair were sent to 
England that the King 
rushed into the Queen's 
apartment, Joyfully 
shouting: " I h a v e 
beaten them ! I have 
beaten all the Ameri- 
cans ! " But he had 
not. Neither the King nor Burgoyne knew 
the men they were trying to defeat, when they 
supposed that victory for an hour meant vic- 
tory for all time. 

General Schuyler heard the news of Ticon- 
deroga's fall while at Fort Edward. The sol- 
diers at his disposal were about half the num- 
ber under Burgoyne. There were not enough 
to fight, but there were plenty to hinder the 
English advance until the men of northern New 
York could enlist to save their homes from de- 
struction. At once Schuyler's troops went to 



J^^<>^ '^'^^^^^^^'^byv^i.^ 



J 22 THE STORY OF TIIK EMPIRE STATE 

work blocking the way by wliicli the Eiiiilisli 
must travel the twenty miles between Lake 
Champlain and Fort Edward, Trees ^vere 
felled, streams were choked to make them 
ovei-flow their banks, bridges were ch()])i)ed 
d()^vn, and such roads as had been opened were 
closed and made impassable. It took Burgoyne 
twenty days to travel those twenty miles, and 
when he reached Fort Edward at last he found 
only an empty fort. Schuyler and his s(ddiers, 
with all [)rovisi(ms, had retreated farther down 
the Hudson. 

Burgoyne's supplies Avere getting scarce. 
He knew that the New England militia had 
chosen Bennington, Vt., as a center of sup- 
plies, and he thought it would be less trouble 
to capture those provisions than to bring others 
from Canada. Accordingly, he sent out a force 
to seize the stores at Bennington. At once the 
men of Vermont left tlieir homes and marched 
to meet the British. They not only met the 
invaders, but surrounded nnd ca])tni(Ml them. 

Bui'goyne had not succeeded in getting the 
Bennington supplies, and he had lost a part of 
his army. Another part had been left at Ticon- 
deroga. The American ranks were rapidly 
being filled by recruits and troops sent by 
Washiui^ton. No word at all came from Gen- 



BURGOYNE'S CAMPAIGN 123 

eral Howe. Bnrgoyne's orders read to follow 
the j)lan laid out, no matter what should hap- 
pen. It was hard to know what to do. And 
now came bad news of St. Leger's expedition. 

St. Leger had landed at Oswego ; had found 
there the promised Tory regiments and the In- 
dian warriors of all the Iroquois tribes with 
the exception of the Oneidas ; and, confident 
of success, had started through the forests to 
sweep all before him. His army soon reached 
Fort Stanwix, the most westerly post of the 
Americans. St. Leger called for an immediate 
surrender. Receiving a point-blank refusal in 
reply, he encamped about the fort and prepared 
to starve out the small garrison. 

There was in that part of the State a brave 
old German patriot named Nicholas Herkimer. 
He promptly called for men to follow him to 
the relief of Fort Stanwix. Eight hundred 
came, and this force set out. 

As they marched along they were seen and 
reported by St. Leger's spies. A band of Tories 
and Indians lay in wait for them near Oriskany, 
at a point where the patriots must pass through 
a ravine. On the morning of August 6 the 
ravine was reached. No sooner had Herkimer 
and his men entered it than they were surprised 
by a volley of shot from every side. Then 



124 



THE STOKY OF THE EMPIRE STATE 



down upon them rushed the howling Indians 
and tlieir Tory allies. Caught in the tra}), the 
jiatriots turned back to back, to fight while life 
should last. Many of those who fought in that 
desperate struggle found themselves staring 
into the face (^f some old friend and neighbor 
Avho had joined the Tories when the war began. 
No choice was left but to kill or be killed. 

Early in the fight Herkimer was shot through 
the leg. He was lifted from his horse and 
placed at the foot of a great 
beech-tree. Sitting there, he 
coolly lighted his pipe, and, 
in spite of the whistling bul- 
lets, directed and encouraged 
his men. Suddenly in the 
distance was heard the crack 
of nuiskets. AVitli one shout 
tlie Indians turned and made 
foi' the forests. The Tories, 
too, beat a hasty retreat, and 
left the ravine to what re- 
mained of Herkimer's little 
band, who soiTowfully buried 
tlieir two hundred dead, and, 
taking their wounded comrades and tlieir 
leader, went back the ^\ ay tlicy had cxmie. 

The shots that had friirhtened the Indians 




Herkimer's monuiuent 
at Oriskuiiv. 



BURGOYNE'S CAMPAIGN 125 

came from the muskets of tlie soldiers of Fort 
Stanwix. A sortie had been ordered. With 
23art of theii^ force at Oriskany, the remainder 
of St. Leger's army could not stand their 
ground, and had drawn back, leaving their 
camp in the possession of the Americans, who 
helped themselves to food, blankets, ammunition, 
and five British flags, before again retreating to 
the fort. Once more safe within the walls, the 
soldiers raised the five captured flags, and over 
these British banners appeared the first Ameri- 
can flag with the stars and stripes. It had been 
hastily made from a white shirt, an old blue 
coat, and a red-flannel petticoat that belonged 
to a soldier's mfe. But it showed the design 
adopted two months before by Congress as the 
flao* of the new nation. 

The British returned to their camp and con- 
tinued the siege. 

Knowing the importance of keeping St. 
Leger from joining Burgoyne, General Schuyler 
called a meeting of army officers, and proposed 
to send a detachment to the relief of Fort Stan- 
wix. The officers opposed the plan. 

Many of them did not like Schuyler, and 
while the discussion was going on an unfriendly 
officer said, in a loud whisper, " He only wants 
to weaken the army." 



126 THE ST(,)11Y OF THE EMPIRE STATE 

"Enough," ci'ied Seliiiyler; "T assume the 
whole responsibility. A\ liere is the brigadiei' 
wlio will take command of the relief i " 

Up jumped Benedict Arnold, saying: 
" Washington sent me here to make myself 
useful. I will go." 

Twelve hundred men volunteered to follow 
him, and the very next day the expedition was 
off foi' Fort Stanwix. On the wa}' they came 
uj)on two boys wlio were known to belong to 
tlie Tory party now with St. Leger. At iirst 
Arnold tlireatened to kill them as sj)ies, but 
finally he made an agreement with the older 
boy. The boy was to have his coat shot full of 
bullet-holes. Then, in this same coat, he was 
to rush into St. Legei''s camp, telling how he 
had just escaped from an American army so 
powerful that it could sweep all l)efore it. 
The younger boy was to remain ^\ ith Arnold 
until his brother returned with his mission 
done, when both boys should be allowed to 
go fi'ee. 

The older boy did his ]iart so w ell, and told 
such a terrifying story, that the Indians at once 
took to their heels. No amount of threats or 
promises could keep them fi-om i-ushing \\ ildly 
away to disa})pear in tlie woods. The whole 
camp was in a ])anic, and before many houi's St. 



BURGOYNE'S CAMPAIGN 127 

Leger's entire army had iled, leaving all their 
tents and stores to the Americans. 

St. Leger and his British sokliers found their 
way to Oswego, and from there went back to 
McmtreaL The Mohawk Valley was safe, and 
Arnold could turn l)ack and Join the American 
forces at Bemis Heights, near Saratoga. 

This was the news which reached Burgoyne 
at Fort Edward. His position was becoming 
worse every day. General Lincoln had raised 
a large force of New England militia and had 
closed in between Burgoyne and Canada, his 
only source of supplies. He still hoped for 
help from Howe, but it was not to come as 
Howe had changed his plan and gone south, 
leaving Clinton to meet Burgoyne. And Clin- 
ton considered his part done when he sailed to 
Kingston, burned tliat city to the ground, and 
returned to New York. 

Burgoyne was now intent on reaching Al- 
bany. He advanced from Fort Edward and 
attacked the Americans at Bemis Heights on 
September 19. All that afternoon the battle 
lasted, and when darkness came neither side 
could claim a victory. The Americans retreated 
to their fortifications, and the British camped 
on the battle-field. Then for over two weeks 
the armies watched each other, waiting for a 



128 TlIK STORY OF THE EMniib: STATE 

cliaiice to strike a fatal blow. During this time 
Arnold was unjustly removed from Lis com- 
mand, but he still remained in the American 
fortifications. 

On the moi-ning of October 7 Burgoyne de- 
termined to make one more effort to open the 
way to Albany. He ordered an attack. At 
once the Americans came forward to meet his 
troops and the fight began. Suddenly Arnold, 
unable to idly watch the battle, jumi)ed on his 
charger and dashed into the thickest of the 
fight. He had no right there, since his command 
had been taken away, Ijut when his old soldiers 
saw him, a shout went up and they followed 
where he led. On they ^^•ent, fighting harder 
and harder until the British were fairly dri\en 
into their camp and the battle was over. 

Burgoyne fell back to Saratoga. He was 
hemmed in on every side ; his earnest efforts to 
reach Alljany had failed ; his supplies were cut 
off', and his troops were in desjiair. There \vas 
but one course left, and on October 17, 1777, 
he and liis soldiers laid down their arms and 
surrendered to the Americans. 

The new^s spread far and near. Burgoyne 
had surrendered, and what was to be the result? 
To England and her troops it meant discourage- 
ment, (ii'eat stores of arms and ammunition 



BUUaOYNE'S CAMPAIGN 129 

bad fallen into tlie patriots' hands, and tlieir 
clierislied plan for dividing tlie colonies had 
failed. France learned with delight of her old 
enemy's distress, and proiaptly sent congratu- 
lations and offers of assistance to the brave new 
nation which was stiTiggling for liberty against 
so great a foe. In America all was joy. New 
York had come out for the patriot cause in spite 
of her many Tories. If the Americans could 
whip one English army they could whip another. 
New hope and determination sprang up, and 
American independence became a probability 
instead of a mere possibility. 



CHAPTER XYTI 

INDIAN .MASS A C It E S 

In 1778 the war was transferred to the 
south, and many of the Northern States were 
left untroubled. It was not so with New York. 
Way out beyond her most westerly settlement 
was a Britisli post at Fort Niagara, and there 
the ragged ends of St. Leger's defeated army 
gatliered themselves together. During the win- 
ter follo\ving Burgoyue's oainpaign the Indians 
and Tories grew more and moi'e bitter over 
their defeat. By the spring of 177s the long- 
ing for revenge had taken a great hold u|)on 
them all, and a Tory, Walter Butler, and an 
Indian, Joseph Brant, added fuel to tlie tire. 

Scalping parties roamed the country. A 
settler and his family just (lro})ping off* to sleep 
would suddenly hear a blood-curdling howl 
rise out of the stillness. Before they could get 
out of their beds the Indians would be upon 
them. No use to beg for mercy. These brutes 
did not know what it meant. Soon a Ijlaze 



INDIAN MASSACRES 131 

would spring up, a few cries would be beard 
and tliat was all. By morning the smoking 
ashes and scalpless bodies would be all that 
was left to tell the tale. 

Terror leigned throughout the settlements. 
As no one man was safe, the farmers joined to- 
gether and went about from farm to farm with 
guns over their shoulders. Some stood guard 
while the others did the required work. 

In May, Brant and his band fell upon Spring- 
field. Every house was burned to the ground. 
June found him in the Schoharie Valley, burn- 
ing, killing, and plundering. With the Indians 
were Butler and the Tories. It seems strange 
that any white man could be more cruel than a 
savage, but so it proved. Joseph Brant led many 
a raid, the details of which are too terrible to be 
told, and yet he has left behind him records of 
deeds of mercy done on these very raids. On 
one occasion a baby was seized and carried off. 
The mother ran after its captor, but could not 
get the little one. Her grief was seen by 
Brant, and two days later he returned the child. 
Again, he saved a woman and her children by 
claiming them as his prisoners and then leaving 
them undisturbed. No such tales are found of 
Butler. On the contrary, he once refused to 
allow his friends to be warned of an attack 

10 



132 THE STORY OF THE EMPIKE STATE 

U230U their town for feai- that through them one 
enemy might escape. 

Hearing of the dreadful deeds going on 
around them, the people of Cherry Valley ap- 
plied for a fort. The fort was built, and Colo- 
nel Alden came with troops to garrison it. 
Many villagers from near-by towns moved to 
Cherry Valley to be under its protection. 

Sununer passed and nothing hap})ene(l. On 
Noveudjer 6 Colonel Alden received a letter 
telling him to be on his guard, as an attack on 
Cherry Valley was planned. The people asked 
permission to come into the fort and bring their 
valuables. Colonel Alden assured them that 
such a ste}) was unnecessary ; that the rei)ort 
Mas oidy an Indian stoiy, and that he would 
keep out scouts who Avould warn them in case 
of real danger. The scouts were sent out, but 
they did not come back. 

All the night of the 10th the snow fell thick 
and fast. The morning of the 1 1 th was dark and 
misty. Through the haze the dreaded enemy 
crept softly over the sn<nv witliout being either 
seen or heard. Suddenly they appeai'ed. j\lany 
of the frightened peo])le w^ere unable to get 
away. Tories and Indians alike burned the 
houses, killed whole families, and took as i)ris- 
oners those that suited their fancy. Colonel 



INDIAN MASSACRES 133 

Alden himself liad not time to reach the fort 
and was scalped. Some few escaped into the 
woods, where they hid in the first nook that 
showed itself. All that day and night those 
terror-stricken persons stayed in their hiding 
places, hearing the yells of the savages as they 
gloried in their vdctory, and often seeing them 
come so near that one conld almost touch 
them. 

Having burned the town, the allies attacked 
the fort, but without success. Then they went 
away witli their prisoners and made no more 
trouble until the next spring. 

Early in 1779, fearing that the events of 
the year Ijefore might be repeated, an expedi- 
tion was sent against the Indians with the hope 
of frightening them into peace. A force of 
about six hundred started for the seat of the 
Onondagas. Near the present city of Syracuse 
they took the savages by surprise and destroyed 
three of their villages. Instead of subduing the 
Indians, the attack started them off again on 
the war-path. 

In the summer another and much larger ex- 
pedition undertook to put an end to the Indian 
raids. Tliis force marched into the territory of 
the Iroquois, met the raiders near Elmira, and 
defeated them. From there they went on, de- 



134: THE STORY OF THE EMPIRE STATE 

stroyini^ and laying waste the Indian villages in 
their path. 

In a few days the expedition came to tlie 
beantiful Genesee Valley. Here the Indians 
had laid ont fai'nis, planted oi'chards, and built 
houses which would have done credit to a 
civilized race. In a fortnight all their work 
was swept away. The trees were cut down, 
the great fields of corn were ruined, and forty 
Indian villages were biu'ned and the inhabitants 
were driven into the forest to starve. For a 
short time it seemed as if the Indians were 
crushed. Soon they were up in arms again, and 
now nothing could stoj) them. Dm-iiig the rest 
of the war they swept back and forth through 
the Mohawk Valley, spreading disaster and 
leaving grief and ruin in their track. 

In the s|)ring of 1779 Washington ordered a 
fort ])uilt at Stony Point. Before it could be 
finished Sir Henry Clinton, now in command of 
the English troops, sailed u|) the rivei'and easily 
took possession. lie comjdeted the fort and 
left a force to gamson it. Stony Point was an 
important jdace, as it commanded the river, and 
it would never do to leave it in the hands of the 
British. 

Among Washington's generals was Anthony 
Wayne, called " Mad Anthony " because of his 



INDIAN MASSACRES 



135 



reckless bravery. He was put in command of 
twelve hundred men and at once set about re- 
taking Stony Point. First, every dog in the 
neighborhood was killed, as this was to be a 
night attack, and one 
bark mi^-ht ruin it all. 
On the night of July 15 
Wayne divided his force 
into two columns. Bay- 
onets were fixed and all 
guns were unloaded so 
that in the dark the col- 
umns would not fire 
upon each other by mis- 
take. From opposite di- 
rections they came nearer 

and nearer the fort and G-'v^^^^^^^^^W^^^^ 
were close upon the out- 
works before they were discovered. In a mo- 
ment the call " To arms ! " aroused the garrison 
and bullets came whistling about the heads of 
the Americans. Not once did they waver. 
Over the ramparts they pressed, and before 
many minutes the garrison had surrendered. 
"Mad Anthony" lost fifteen men and took 
five hundred and fifty - three prisoners. He 
had the fort, but not men enough to keep it, 
so, after removing all the stores, the works 




130) THE STOKV OF THE EMPIRE STATE 

were destroyed, and A\'a\"nt^ inarched away 
again. 

A few miles north of Stony Point the 
Americans had Ituilt strong fortitications at 
West Point, and here was soon to occni' one of 
tlie most uni)ardonable events in the histoiy of 
America. 



CHAPTER XVIII 

BENEDICT ARNOLD 

The story of Beuedict Arnold is a sad one. 
Born in Connecticut, he lived there much as 
other young men of that time lived, until the 
British troops entered Boston. Soon came the 
call for men to defend theu* country from Eng- 
lish tyranny. At once Arnold raised a company 
of soldiers and led them to Cambridge. From 
the time war was declared, Arnold was eager to 
lead the most dangerous expeditions, and by his 
fearless bravery and undaunted valor won the 
friendshi]^ and admiration of Washington. 

But Arnold, like many others, had another 
side to his character. He was vain and con- 
ceited, and had very little of that quality of a 
true soldier which is expressed in the words, 

" Theirs not to reason why. 
Theirs but to do and die." 

He not only reasoned why, but plainly 
told his superior officers where he thought their 
mistakes lay. His manner and the jealousy 

137 



138 



THE STORY OF THE EMPIRE STATE 



aroused by the praise be won brought liiin many 
enemies. And owing to their influence, Con- 
gress, early in 1777, passed him over in the 
appointment of five new^ major-generals. 

Ai'nold had a right to expect promotion 
in reward for his work, and it was natural 
that he should resent the 
slight thus put upon him. 
He felt hurt and angry, and 
would have left the army 
had it not been for Wash- 
ington's entreaty to over- 
look the matter. 

Then came Burgoyne's 
campaign, when Arnold's 
diplomacy saved Fort 8tan- 
wix and his daring won the 
dav at Bemis IIeio:hts. Had 
Arnold died while leading his l)rave chaige, his 
name would have been saved from the blackest 
stain in the records of American history. But 
lie did not die. He ^vas, however, shot through 
the leg, and the following summer, thinking 
liiin not sufliciently recovered for active service, 
Wasliington placed him in command at Phila- 
delphia. Here further trouble awaited him. 
His new position required tact, not bravery, 
and tact was a quality which Arnold did not 




BENEDICT ARNOLD 139 

have. Besides, Congress was iu session at Phila- 
delphia, and after the slight which this body 
had shown Arnold it was no wonder that he did 
not feel altogether in accord with its members. 

Disputes soon arose, and stories were cu^- 
culated which put Arnold in a bad light. Some 
said he lived beyond his means and ran in debt. 
This was true. Others said he favored the 
Tories. Certain it is he did favor at least 
one. Miss Margaret Shippen was a Tory, and 
Arnold loved her and became engaged to her. 
At her home he heard Tory principles, and it is 
quite possible that, lacking great depth of char- 
acter, he allowed these principles to become his 
own to some extent. 

Be that as it may, Arnold quarreled more and 
more with his fellow workers in command, and 
finally in December resigned his })osition. He 
left Philadelphia. Hardly was his back turned 
when a bitter and powerful enemy brought 
formal charges of misconduct against him, and 
copies were sent to all the States. Arnold was 
furious. He hurried back to Philadelphia and 
demanded an investigation. A full year passed 
before he was finally acquitted, and in that year 
his anger grew and spread beyond all bounds, 
and duty, countiy, and honor were all lost sight 
of in injured pride. 



140 THE STORY OP THE EMPIRE STATE 

Impulsively, Arnold wrote Sir Henry Clin- 
ton saying lie was an American officer who 
might be persuaded to go over to the English 
side. He signed his letter " Gustavus." Other 
letters followed. Clinton's replies were written 
under the name of " John Anderson." Fi'om 
the correspondence grew the plot \vliich changed 
an American officer into so false a traitor tluit 
he is held up to the children of the land in 
which he was born as a man whom his country 
is ashamed to own. 

The English held New York city, and above 
all else they wanted to get possession of the 
Hudson. But there lay the strong fortifications 
at West Point which could not be passed. If 
Clinton might only seize West Point ! There 
was one way in which this could be done, and 
Arnold agreed to make it possil)le. He pi'e- 
sumed on Washington's friendship to ask for 
the command of the coveted fortress. Still 
trusting him and wishing to make up for wliat 
had passed, Washington gladly put him in 
cliarge. He took command in August, 1780, 
and the ]^)lot began to develoj). 

It was not safe or altogether satisfactory to 
make the final arrangements by letter, so it Avas 
planned that Clinton's adjutant-general, John 
Andre, and Arnold sh(^uld meet. Andre was 



BENEDICT ARNOLD 



141 




a brave young officer, well educated, and full 
worthy the trust which Clinton placed in him. 

On September 20 Andre boarded the war- 
ship Vulture and was carried up the Hudson. 
The next night, when 
all was dark and still, a 
small boat ran alongside 
the English ship and 
Andre dropped quietly 
into it and w^as ro^ved 
away. The little boat 
took him to a thicket 
on the shore, and there 
he found Arnold waiting. 
All night they plotted 
and planned. A large 
part of the West Point 
troops \vere to be sent away on some pretense, 
and while they were gone a British fleet was to 
sail up the river and easily capture the almost 
deserted fort. Hiding there in the darkness, 
Arnold explained every detail and gave to 
Andi-e maps of the fort and papers hlled wdth 
careful instructions. These papers Andre put 
in the feet of his stockings. 

Everything was now plain, but the night 
had ffone and the frisjhtened boatmen would 
not risk taking Andre back to the Vulture. 



^-^a^^r?^ *^^^c/7-<^ 



1-1:2 THE STORY OF THE EMPIRE STATE 

This did not matter. iVrnold knew a man in 
whose house Andre miglit pass the day, and 
\vhen niccht came ao:ain the man would row him 
to liis ship. It seemed safe enough. Who 
could have foreseen that the batteries across 
the river would open fire and drive the Vul- 
ture do\\Ti-stream ? But tliat is what lia[)- 
pened. Still the conspirators believed that the 
shij) would not go so far but that Andi'o could 
reach her that night. Arnold wrote out passes 
for both Andre and his host, Joshua Smith, 
and went back to his foii, feeling sure that all 
was well. 

All that long day Andre waited. Niglit 
came at last, and then Smith refused to take 
Andre to the Vulture. If only his guest 
would go back to Ne^v York by land Smith 
knew there would l)e less danger Smith would 
ride with him all night, and he should ^vear 
Smith's clothes. But if he chose to go to his 
ship, then he must find some one else to take 
him. This was out of the question, and Andre 
was obliged to return by land. At dusk he 
and Sinith crossed the river and set out on the 
long ride. The night passed without incident, 
and early in the morning Aiuhv let Smith re- 
tui'n liome to tell Arnold tliat he was nearing 
the British lines in safety. 



BENEDICT ARNOLD 



143 



At that time the roads east of the Hudson 
were overrun by two sets of robbers — the Cow- 
boys and the Skinnei's — and on this very morn- 
ing a party of young men belonging to the 




The Smith house. 



American army had come out to waylay a 
certain Cowboy band. Andre was riding peace- 
fully along, when suddenly three of the young 
Americans sprang out of the bushes and ordered 
him to halt. Andre drew up and looked at 
them. Ah ! one had on the coat of a Hessian 
soldier. He must be in sympathy with the 
Eno-lish, 



144 THE STORY OF THE EMl'IKK STATE 

''Gentlemen, 1 hope you belong to our side," 
said Andre. 

"Which sidei!" asked the men. It was 
hard to judge of the nationality of Smitli's old 
clothes. 

Still thinking that Hessian coat must hold 
a friend, Andi'e boldly replied, " i am a British 
otticei' on urgent business and hope you will not 
detain me." 

Detain him { Could he not tell that they 
were Americans^ lie must dismount at once. 
Arnold's pass would do no good. They would 
search him. Nothing in the saddle. Nothing 
in his coat or vest. IIow about the boots i 
Andre objected, Ijut the three men would see 
for themselves. And they did. Out came the 
papers. That was the end. No money, no 
threats, no promises, nothing could induce the 
young Americans to release their prisoner. He 
was taken up the river and handed over to 
Colonel Jameson. This was on Sc])t('nd)er 25. 

On the morning of the 25th, Arnold, his 
young wife, and several officers were at break- 
fast, when a messenger brought a letter from 
Colonel Jameson. Arnold read the letter, put 
it in his ])ocket, and rising from the table, said 
that he was called across the river, but would 
soon be back, as he expected Washington that 



BENEDICT ARNOLD 



145 



Mrs. Arnold followed him from the 
room. He hurriedly told her that Jameson's 
letter brought news of Andre's capture ; that 
as yet he was unsuspected ; and that he must 
fly at once. Out he rushed and made all speed 
for the river. Once there, he ordered some 
boatmen to row him rapidly down-stream t(^ 
the Vulture, \\hich was still lying at anchor 
waiting for Andre. With Arnold aboard, the 
ship started for New York, and the next morn- 
ing Arnold was safe within the British forts. 

Washington reached Arnold's home shortly 
after the traitor left. He waited for his host to 




Arnold's headquarters, opposite West Point. 

return, having no idea but that he would surely 
come. In the afternoon another letter from 
Jameson arrived, and with this one came the 
papers taken from Andre. Washington read 
the letter, looked over the papers, and then, as 



140 TJIE STORY OF THE K.MI'IRE STATE 

tlif truth forced itself upon him, he sadly turned 
to his officers and said : " Arnold is a traitor and 
lias fled to the British ! A\ horn can we trust 
now?'' 

Efforts were made to capture Arnold, but 
without success. He became a major-general 
in the English army, and was paid $30,000 foi- 
betraying his country. Andre's fate ^vas quite 
different. Much sympathy was expressed for 
him ; many urgent ]^)leas were made for his re- 
lease, lie himself wrote to Washington telling 
his story in a straightforward way with the ho[)e 
of pardon. But war was \var and a spy was a 
spy, and he nnist pay the penalty of being one. 
John Andre was sentenced to be hanged, and on 
October 2 the sentence was cari'ied out. He 
faced his death with more bravery than Arnold 
could summon up to face his new life. One 
day, soon after he entered the British army, 
Arnold came upon an American captain who 
had l)een taken prisoner. 

Arnold asked him, "What would become of 
me if I should fall into American hands V 

"If my countrymen catch you they will cut 
off your leg which A\as Avounded at Saratoga 
and bury it with the honors of war, and the 
rest of you they will hang on the gallows." 

For twenty-one years Arnold lived as an 



BENEDICT ARNOLD 147 

English subject. When tlie war was over lie 
had no part in the victory. He went to Eng- 
land and made his home in London. His wife 
Joined him and did all in her power to make 
him happy, but even her devotion could not 
save him from an occasional taunt, or keep his 
sons from the shame of their father's guilt. 

Arnold's last years were filled with remorse 
and self-reproach. As he grew weaker, his mind 
seemed taken up with the old days befoi'e he 
lost his self-respect, his country, and his honor. 
He lived over again Washington's loyal friend- 
ship for him, and finally, when he knew he 
could not live, he called for his old uniform, and 
said : " Let me die in the uniform in which I 
fought so often for my country. May God for- 
give me for ever putting on any other." 



11 



CHAPTER XIX 

CLOSE OF THE KEVOLUTION AND THE BEGINNING 
OF THE REPUBLIC 

AVest Point did not fall into the hands of 
the English; but the possibility of an attack 
at any time led to a })lan for driving the Eng- 
lish out of New York. Washington's troops 
were to join with six thousand soldiers sent 
from France, and the combined force was to 
march against the city. 

Each day hearing new details of tlie [)lan, 
Clinton grew alarmed, and made every eifoi't to 
strengthen the defenses. In addition, he sent 
to Cornwallis, who was in cliarge of the English 
troops in the south, asking for as many reen- 
forcements as possible. 

And all this time the American troo]is were 
building roads, laying out camps and collecting 
supplies. Clinton looked on, and became sure 
tluit he would need all the he!}) he could get. 
So lie again sent word to C(^rinvallis. This time 
the directions were for Cornwallis to move to 

148 



CLOSE OP THE REVOLUTION 149 

the Virginia capes, aud be ready to board his 
ships and start for New York on short notice. 
Accordingly, Cornvvallis moved his army to 
Yorkto^vn, whicli is on a cape surrounded on 
three sides by Chesapeake Bay. 

One day in August, 1781, the commander 
of the French fleet which was assisting the 
Americans informed Washington that he and his 
s(|uadron were on the way to Chesapeake Bay 
What a chance ! If Washington could only 
get his troops to Virginia, he and the French 
fleet could surround Cornwallis and prevent 
him from leavins; Yorktown. It must be done ! 
The very next day, while small detachments of 
his men were apparently carrying on prepara- 
tions for the attack on Ne\v York, Washington 
and his army slipped oft* for Virginia. He was 
well on his way before Clinton knew he was 
gone. 

On the last day of August the French 
squadron arrived oft Yorktown, but found no 
fleet of any size to oppose it. Soon Washing- 
ton and his soldiers reached there, and Corn- 
wallis was caught in the trap. There was no 
way out ; no help came from Clinton ; and 
finally, on October 19, 1781, Cornwallis surren- 
dered to the American Commander-in-Chief. The 
victorious army was drawn up in two lines — the 



150 



THE STORY OF THE EMPIRE STATE 



Frencli on one side and the Americans on the 
other, with A\ asliington at the liead. The seven 
tliousand cai)tives marched slowly between the 
lines with colors furled and their band jdayiug 
an old English melody called, "The AVorld 
Turned Upside Down." 

The uew^s of the victory spread over the 
whole country. Peoj^le everywhere Avere \\ ild 










■"X^!-^ 



* f-r<JCl _4-i3s^*fei^ 



House where Lord (>orn\vallis .surrendered. 



with joy, for all felt that the defeat of Coru- 
wallis meant the end of the war. The English, 
too, realized that it was useless to contimie the 
strugii^le. The King alone refused to acknowl- 
edge that lie ^vas beaten. For some time he 
persisted in planning another campaign, as his 
trooi)s still held New York. However, he found 
that he could do nothing. So, saying that the 
Americans were a wretched lot of knaves, and 



CLOSE OF THE REVOLUTION 151 

that he was glad to get rid of them, he agreed 
to a treaty of peace, which was signed in Sep- 
tember, 1783. 

November 25 of that same year was set as 
the day for the English troops to leave New 
York. AVashington, his oificers, and the soldiers 
not already dismissed, marched into the city in 
time to see the English ships sail away. Be- 
fore many days Washington said farewell to his 
troops, and started on his journey home to 
Vir2:iuia. 

A sad change had been made in New York 
during the seven years in which the English 
had lived there. A great fire had ruined nearly 
a third of the city. The soldiers had turned 
dwelling-houses into barracks, churches into 
stables, and public buildings and warehouses 
into prisons. When these prisons w^ere filled 
the prisoners had ])een crowded into old ships ly- 
ing in the bay, which ^^ ere unfit for any human 
being. In all these places of confinement the 
prisoners' lot had been one of horror. Winters 
were passed without blankets or fire. Food was 
scarce, and the treatment shown the imprisoned 
by their English captors was shameful. Even 
after the prisoners had been released, the city 
bore the terrible effects of the long war. The 
warehouses held no goods ; no ships lay at the 



152 



THE STORY OF THE EMPIRE STATE 



deserted wharves, and the returning citizens 
found their homes in ruins. 

What was true of the city was true of the 
province. New York was the only one of the 
tliirteen original colonies to comply with every 
re(|uest made by the Continental Congress 
during the war. She had sent money and 




Rhinolandor snirar-hmiso, used as a prison dnrinsi: the Rovolu- 
tionary Wiir. From an old print. 

soldiers even beyond w^liat was asked. IMany 
serious battles liad been fought wnthin her 
borders. And, too, she had had a sad ex- 
perience' ^vith her native savages. Still she 
was not crnsluMl. In the very midst of her 
trouble her statesmen had foi'med for her a 
new government, and liad adopted a liljeral 




fe 



154 THE STORY OF THE EMPIRE STATE 

eoustitiition which changed her from a coh^ny 
to a State. 

Each of tlie twelve other provinces liad 
taken the same step, and at the close of the 
war Kincj; Georo-e's American colonies liad be- 
come thirteen States. These ne^v States were 
entirely independent of one another, exce2)ting 
for Congress, which could do no more than 
advise. It was soon seen that if the thirteen 
States \vanted to act as one nation they must 
have a form of government invested with })ower 
to decide all matters of common interest. In 

1788 these States joined in the adoption of a 
national Constitution, and l)ecame the United 
States of America, Washington, who had so 
loyally commanded the troops, w^as chosen the 
first President. 

New York city was to be the seat of gov- 
ernment for the time being. By the spring of 

1789 all was ready for the new Government to 
begin its work. On April 23 Washington came 
sailing into New York liarlxu-. Great crowds 
gave him a welcome that nnist have well repaid 
him for the hardships he had undergone in win- 
ning for his countrymen their indei)endence. 
The inauguration w^as celelirated by proces- 
sions, bancpiets, and services in all the churches. 
Joy was in eveiy heai't. It was indeed a day 



CLOSE OF THE REVOLUTION 155 

for New York State to remember, and it is uo 
wonder that a hundred years later her inhabit- 
ants held a great centennial celebration in com- 
memoration of the time when in her chief city 
was inaugurated the first President of the 
American Republic. 



CHAPTER XX 

NEW YORK AFTEll THE liEVOLUTION 

Hardly was the war over before large wag- 
ons were seen slowly working their way into 
our State. Each wagon held the honsehold 
goods and usually two or three little children 
belonging to some sturdy New Englander, 
Behind the wagon the mother and the older 
children rode on horseback. Possibly the 
father had served in New York during the 
war, and had seen the I'icli niiclaiiiKMl l.-iiid 
to the west, or perhaps some soldier friend 
had told him of the fertile valleys of the 
Moliawk and Genesee. Howbeit, he had 
])acked u]) bag and baggage and set out for 
New York State. 

The roads \vere mere A\agon tracks, and the 
^\■agons ])umped over stones and fallen ti'ees 
and saidv into great nuid-holes. It was slow 
traveling. After growing weary of the hard 
journey, each New Englander jiicked out some 
inviting spot, unloaded his possessions, built a 

156 



NEW YORK AFTER THE REVOLUTION 157 

cabin for his family, and settled down to become 
a New Yorker. 

The was>:ons came in such numbers that 
before long many small villages were formed 
by the newcomers throughout the central, west- 
ern, and northern parts of the State. Farms 
were laid out, crops were raised, and soon loads 
of grain began to appear in Albany. 

To better carry on trade between the differ- 
ent towns the settlers built roads, rough to be 
sure, but they helped to build up a commerce. 




Wacfons and carriages of that time. 

The roads inspired the running of stage- 
coaches between certain of the towns. One 
line ran from Whitestown to Canajoharie. The 
coach started from Whitesto^vn every Monday 
and Thursday at two in the afternoon, and if 



158 THE STORY OP TDE EMPIRE STATE 

all went \vell covered the four miles between 
that town and Utica by dark. There the pas- 
sengers spent the night, or at least part of it. 
At four in the morning they must be ready to 
set off a^'ain, and the next niij;lit found them at 
their journey's end. Two dollars were charged 
for the entire tiip, and way passengei's paid at 
the rate of eight cents a mile. To spend twen- 
ty-eight or thii-ty hours in going so short a dis- 
tance would seem ridiculous in these days of 
steam-engines. But the New Yorkers of 1 800 
thought this pretty rapid travel. And so it 
was \vhen }()U consider that forty }'ears before 
the traveling was done in canoes by following 
the many curves and bends of a stream whose 
obstructions, often barring the way, made it 
necessary to land, lift the canoe from the water, 
and carry it and its contents aj'ound. 

A four-horse coach I'an between New York 
and Boston. It started at three each morning 
dui'ing the trip and ke])t on until ten at night. 
Very often the passengers were obliged to get 
out and help lift the stage from some unusually 
deep nuid-hole. Six long days were spent in 
beino- rattled about in the rouij-h old stao;e before 
the trip was over. 

One reckless stage-line proprietor advertised 
to carry passengers from Albany to New York 



NEW YORK AFTER THE REVOLUTION 159 

in two days. This would have been very won- 
derful, but when the trip was undertaken the 
man found he was obliged to spend three days 
on the road. 

Albany had lost her fur trade during the 
war, but in these first years of peace she became 
the center of a large grain trade, and so kept her 
importance in the State. Here, too, was a center 
of the postal service. Every Wednesday and 
Saturday the " up-mail " arrived from New 
York, and two hours after it reached Albany 
the " down-mail " w as started off. Then the 
" up-mail " had to be distributed to the outlying 
towns. Once in two weeks mail was carried on 
horseback way to the Genesee Valley. 

A letter could be sent thirty miles for six 
cents, sixty miles for ten cents, and four hundred 
and fifty miles for twenty -five cents. Not many 
letters were written on account of the high rates 
of postage, because paper cost so much and there 
were no envelopes. This last fact made it very 
easy for the mail-carriers to amuse themselves 
as they Jogged along, by reading the letters in 
their charge. No doubt these letters were very 
interesting, as the people made up for writing 
so seldom by drawing out those letters they did 
write to a great length and filling them with 
all the news it was possible to gather together. 



160 THE STOKY OF THE EMPIRE STATE 

Statesmen weve obliged to write iu ci])lier to 
keep the state secrets from becoming public 
property. 

At the close of the war a new treat}' of 
peace was made with the Indians, but the reign 
of the Iroquois Confederacy had come to an 
end. Gradually the Indian lands were bought. 
In consequence many of the Indians moved 
west and into Canada, and those who remained, 
settled on tracts of land which the Government 
reserved for their use. 

These Indian reservations still exist, and 
there are now about iive thousand descendants 
of the People of the Long House living on them. 
The Iroquois have lost their old tieiy spirits and 
have given up many of the Indian customs of 
earlier days. But though they now dress like 
white men, they have not the white man's in- 
dustry. The State pays each reservation an 
annuity in money, and the United States pays 
each an annuity in merchandise. Schools have 
been established to educate the Indian children, 
l)utonly about a third of them attend. 

Many efforts are being put forth to en- 
couraue the Indians to make the most of them- 
selves, but they are lazy and do not like to 
woi'k. The "tire-water," wliich Henry Hudson 
first taught their race to relish, still causes nmcli 



NEW YORK AFTER THE REVOLUTION 161 

drunkenness among their number. Some few 
cultivate the land and are comparatively well- 
to-do. Basket-making pleases them, and they 
weave baskets of many shapes and sizes to sell 
in near-by towns. For the most part, however, 
they are poor, and depend for a living upon 
doing odd jobs for the whites, and on their an- 
nuities. 

The last three hundred years have seen a 
great change in the Iroquois Indians. In 1600 
they were a wild, savage, but brave and ener- 
getic race ; 1900 finds them with their energy 
gone, their spirit broken, and with no desire to 
profit by the opportunities offered them. A 
few scattered, shiftless, drinking never-do-wells 
are about all that remain of the once powerful 
Five Nations. 

As New York was rich in waterways, man- 
ufactories were built along the streams early 
in the nineteenth century, that the water-power 
might help convert rough materials into useful 
articles. Iron was worked from the ore and 
made into machinery ; factories turned out cot- 
ton cloth, linen, wool, and even silk ; paper and 
glass were made, and clocks, hats, tin dishes, 
and all sorts of necessities were soon on the 
market to tell of New York industry and 
thrift. 



162 THE STORY OF THE EMPIKB] STATE 

Altlioiigli peace prevailed, tlie defenses of 
our State were not altogether neglected. West 
Point was strongly fortitied, and there, in 1802, 
was established the West Point jNIilitary Acad- 
emy, which is still the national school foi- train- 
ing American boys to become officers of the 
American ai'my. 

New York city was not left behind in the 
general prosperity which follow ed the Kevolu- 
tioii. A gay society sprang up in the ca])ita] 
city of the rejmblic, and New York presented 
a lively picture. In 171*0 the seat of the na- 
tional Government was changed to Phiiadelpliia, 
and in 1797 the State government moved to 
Albany. Neither of these changes, however, 
interfered with the trade which was develop- 
ing with the States and witli foreign countries. 
New York's population continued to increase, 
until in 1800 there "were sixty thousand people 
living in the metropolis. 

The State had taken many steps foiward, 
and yet how different was life at the beginning 
of the nineteenth century from what it is now! 
Think of never having seen a railroad-train, 
a trolley-car, a tall building, an elevator, or an 
asphalt ])avement! Imagine living in a time 
when tliere were no telepliones, no sewing-ma- 
chines, and no bicycles ! If you wished to w rite 



NEW YORK AFTER THE REVOLUTION 163 

a letter, it liad to be done with a pen made from 
tlie stiff end of a feather, as steel pens were un- 
known. Sand was spi'inkled over the ink to 
dry it, as no one had such a thing as blotting- 
paper. When night came you would hud no 
gas or electric lights. In the place of matches 
you would have to strike a spark from a piece 
of flint and a steel, and in that way light your 
candle. 

Already, before 1800, attempts had been 
made to run boats by steam, but without very 
great success. One xVmerican, Robert Fulton, 
worked away on a plan that he felt sure could 
not fail. In 1806, with plans completed, he 
went to New York and set about the building 
of his boat. The New Yorkers did not believe 
it possible to do all Fulton claimed, and they 
always spoke of his boat as '' Fulton's Folly." 
Fulton himself named it the Clermont. 

Here is his own account of the building of 
New York's first steamboat and its first trip : 
"As I had occasion to pass daily to and from 
the building yard ^vllile my boat was in progress, 
I have often loitered unknown near the idle 
groups of strangers gathering in little circles, 
and heard various iiKpiiries as to the object of 
the new vehicle. The language was uniformly 
that of scorn, sneer, or ridicule. The loud laugh 

13 



164 



THE STORY OP THE EMPIRE STATE 



rose at my expense, the dry jest, the a\ ise culcu- 
latioii of losses aud expenditures. Nothing was 
heard but the endless repartition of ' Fulton's 
Folly.' 

"■ Never did a single encouraging remark, a 
bright hope, or a w arm wish cross my path. 




Rt)l)ert Fulton. 

Silence itself was but i)()liteness veiling its 
doubts or liiding its reproaches. 

"At length tlie day ai-rived when the ex- 
periment was to be got into ojieration. To me 
it ^^■as a most trying and interesting occasion. 



NEW YORK AFTER THE REVOLUTION 165 

I invited many friends to go on board to wit- 
ness tlie first successful trip. Many of them 
did me the favor to attend as a matter of per- 
sonal respect, but it was manifest they did it 
with reluctance, fearing to be partners of my 
mortification and not of my triumph. 

" I was well aware that in my case there 
were many reasons to doubt of my own success. 
The machinery was new and ill made, and many 




Fulton's first steamboat, the Clermont. 

parts of it were constructed by mechanics un- 
acquainted with such work, and unexpected 
difficulties might reasonably be presumed to 
present themselves from other causes. 

" The moment arrived in which the word 
was to be given for the vessel to move. My 
friends were in groups on the deck. There was 
anxiety mixed with fear among them. They 
were silent, sad, and weary. I read in their 



IGG THE STORY OF THE EMPIRE STATE 

looks notliing but disaster, and almost iv})eHted 
of my efforts. 

" Tlie signal was given, and the ])oat moved 
on a sliort distance, and then stop[)ed and be- 
came immovable. To tlie silence of the })re- 
ceding moment now succeeded murnmrs of dis- 
content, and agitations and whispers and shrugs. 
I could hear distinctly repeated, ' I told you it 
was so,' ' It is a foolish scheme,' ' I wish we were 
well out of it.' 

" I elevated myself on a platform and ad- 
dressed the assembly. I stated that I knew not 
what was the matter, but if tliey would be (piiet 
and indulge iiic for half an hour I would either 
go on or al)andi>n the voyage for that time. 
This sliort respite was conceded without ob- 
jection. 

" I went l)elow and examined the machinery, 
and discovered that the cause was a slight mal- 
adjustment of some of the work. In a short 
period it was obviated. The boat was again 
})ut in motion. She contiiuied to move on. All 
were still incredulous. None seemed w'illing to 
trust the evidence of their own senses. 

'' We left the fair city of New York ; we 
passed through the romantic and ever-varying 
scenery of the Highlands; we descried the 
clustering houses of Albany ; we reached its 



NEW YORK AFTER THE REVOLUTION 167 



shores ; and tlieu, even then, when all seemed 
achiev^ed, I was the victim of disappointment. 
Imagination superseded the influence of fact. 
It was then doubted if it could be done again, 
or, if done, it was doubted if it could be made 
of any great value." 

This was the first of many successful trips 
made by the Clermont between Albany and 
New York. 

Political feeling at this time was very bitter. 
Men of o[)posing parties attacked each other 
through the papers or 
in speeches, and the 
quarrels thus started 
often led to serious 
trouble. 

The most to be re- 
gretted of these quar- 
rels occurred between 
two of New York's 
best-known statesmen, 
Alexander Hamilton 
and Aaron Burr. 

Hamilton, born in 
the West Indies in 
1757, came to New 
York, graduated at Columl)ia College, and at 
seventeen years of age entered politics. Here 




168 



THE STORY OF THE EMPIRE STATE 



his addresses and newspaper articles won for 
him a great reputation. During the war he 
served with honor in AVashington's army, and 
was employed in tlie most delicate and impor- 
tant trusts. AMien peace was established Ham- 
ilton represented New A'ork 
at the convention which 
drew up the national Con- 
stitution. He was able and 
industrious in public affairs, 
and did most important 
work in the settlement of 
the many difficulties which 
beset the republic in its 
early days. 

Another powerful states- 
^/2y^^:y man of that time A\as Aaron 
Burr. Alth(mgh he had 
served as Vice-President of the United States, 
liis methods were not all al)Ove criticism. In 
1804 he ran for the office of governor of New 
York. Hamilton opposed him. 

At a certain pi'ivate meeting Hamilton said, 
"No reliance onirht to be placed on Burr." 

This little s])eecli was repeated to Hnrr, and 
made to sound like an attack on his private 
character. 

Hurl' lost the electicm. Angry and disaj)- 




NEW YORK AFTER THE REVOLUTION 169 

poiuted, he laid his failure to Hamilton's having 
opposed him. Tlien there was that speech. He 
sent to Hamilton, saying that the remark must 
be taken back. Hamilton had stated his honest 
opinion and would not recall what he had said. 
Here was Burr's chance. He challenged Ham- 
ilton to a duel, in the hope of forev^er doing 
away with his opposition. Hamilton did not 
consider dueling right, but the code of honor 
of that time compelled him to accept Burr's 
challenge. 

July 1 1 was chosen as the day for the duel, 
and in the mornino; sunlio;ht the two statesmen 
and their seconds were rowed across the Hud- 
son River to AVeehawken. Pistols were to be 
the weapons. Each took his place. The signal 
was given. Hamilton, true to his principles, 
did not fire. Burr took deliberate aim and shot 
Hamilton through the body. He fell face for- 
ward to the ground. For a time those about 
him thought him dead, but he rallied sufficiently 
to be carried home and did not die until the 
next afternoon. 

The news of the duel spread great excite- 
ment throughout the country. Burr fled. For 
years he went about from place to place, en- 
gaging in schemes of various sorts. Finally he 
came back to New York and died in that city 



170 



THE STORY OF THP: EMPIRE STATE 



in 1836, disgTaced 
and deiioiiiiced as 
a murderer. 

The i"e}H>rt of 
Haniiltoirs death 
caused general 
iiiouruiiig,aud New 
York was wrapped 
in gloom. Ou tlie 
day of his fuiiei'al 
shops were closed, 
flags were at half- 
mast, and muffled 
bells tolled out the 
city's grief. A 
great })rocessiou 
followed him to the 
grave. Along the 
line of march the 
streets were packed 
on either side. 
The porches were crowded, and even from the 
trees an<l li(>useto])s the citizens looked down 
upon the man wlio had s])ent his lifetime in 
serving loyally and well his country and his 
State. 




Statnc of A]r\: 
Cent ml Park. 



Erui-lfil l(St>(). 



CHAPTEK XXI 

THE WAR OF 1812 

Out on the lii2;b seas an American merchant 
vessel was sailing. In the distance aj^peared a 
British man-of-war. Nearer and nearer it came. 
Suddenly a great roar sounded above the tum- 
bling waves, and a cannon-ball whirled across 
the bow of the American ship. This meant, in 
plain language, " Heave to, or be sunk." The 
American vessel naturally preferred to heave to. 
Alongside came the great British war-ship, and 
British officers boarded the merchant vessel. 
Soon the American crew was drawn up in line, 
and the British officers commenced to pick out 
such sailors as they decided, in their own 
minds, should be serving in the English navy. 
It was useless for these sailors to say that 
they were Americans by birth. The English 
officers insisted that they were deserters from 
England, and must return to her service. 
The sailors thus ]iicked out were forced to 
go aboard the British war-ship, and off she 

171 



172 THE STORY OF THE EMPIRE STATE 

sailed, leavino; the American vessel to continue 
ber journey. 

Oilier Britisli nien-of-Mar met other Ameri- 
can merchant ships on the high seas, and the 
same performance was repeated. Enghuid even 
went so far as to station Avar-ships near tlie en- 
trance of each of our lai'gest liarbors, ready to 
stop and search the merchant vessels as they 
came out. 

When nearlv nine hundred American sliips 
had been searched, and over six thousand Amer- 
ican sailors had been carried off, the American 
nation thought it time to put a stop to such 
proceedings. Not only that, but the English 
had notfultilled all the agreements of the treaty 
wliich closed the Revolution, and liad placed 
such restrictions on American commerce as to 
shut it out from other ])orts. Surely here was 
sufficient cause to prom])t the Amei-icans <»nce 
more to take up arms against England. In 
1812 war was declared. 

Again New Ynvk lay open to British iuva- 
si())i. Troops were raised, and the forts along 
the iioi'thern and western fi'ontiers were garri- 
soned. 

The British made their first attack u])on 
our State at Sacket Harboi- in the sununer of 
1812. Thev were defeated. Durinu' the rest of 



THE WAR OP 1812 



173 



that year and the first half of the next the two 
armies went back and forth across the waters 
wliich divided New York State from Canada, 
and attacked each other's forts. But not nntil 
the Americans captured the British stronghokl 
at Fort George was any important victory won 
by either side. 

The winter of 1812 was bitter cokl. Never- 
theless, \vorkmen were busy near Erie, Pa., 




jMap of Lake Eric. 

cliopping down great trees, collecting all the 
scraps of iron that could be found, and building 
from the green timber a fleet which was to fight 
for the control of Lake Erie. Commodore 
Oliver Hazard Perry — a young naval officer of 
twenty -seven — engineered the building of the 
ships. Thanks to his energy and perseverance, 
nine vessels ready for war sailed out upon the 
lake during the summer of 1818. 

On the morning of September 10 a shout 



in 



THE STORY OF THE EMPIRE STATE 



rang out over tlie water. It came from the 
outlook at the masthead of Perry's flagshi]), the 
Lawrence, and tohl that English sails were in 
sight. There were six well-equipped vessels 
bearing down np(jn the American fleet. The 
Americans had the advan- 
tage in numbers, but the 
English had more guns on 
their six ships than Perry's 
nine possessed. On came 
the attacking vessels. Our 
ships made ready for action, 
and, led by the Lawrence, 
went forwai'd to meet the 
enemy. Both sides were 
determined to win, and so 
fiercely did each attack the 
other, that before long the Lawrence \\as in 
ruins ; her cannon were disabled, her masts 
were torn away, and most of her brave sailors 
were killed. It seemed as if Pei'ry must sur- 
render, when all at once he seized the banner 
of his tlagshii), slid over the side into a small 
boat, and was rowed toward the Niagara, which 
was still unharmed. The British conunander 
saw him and shouted, " Fire upon that boat ! " 
l^alls struck the water on every side, but Perry, 
standing wrap[)e(l in his flag, reached the Ni- 




CJ^^'fr^'^e^m^y 



THE WAR OF 1812 175 

agara iu safety. Immediately lie took command, 
and bearing down upon the enemy, sailed right 
into their midst, dealing death and destruction 
on every side. In fifteen minutes the British 
fleet was powerless. 

Perry went back to the disabled Lawrence, 
and there received the English surrender. His 
messa2:e to the President was written on the 
back of an old letter. It simply said : " We 
have met the enemy, and they are ours ; two 
ships, two brigs, one schooner, and one sloop." 

A number of times since the war began 
naval engagements had taken place along our 
seacoasts, but in every case the battle had been 
between one English and one American vessel. 
Over and over again the Americans had come 
off victorious. Still England was " Mistress of 
the Seas," and until Perry met those six Eng- 
lish vessels on Lake Erie, no American fleet had 
ever encountered a fleet of British men-of-war. 
Is it any wonder, then, that the young commo- 
dore became a hero wherever the news was told 
that " Perry has gained control of Lake Erie, 
and has whipped an English fleet with his new 
boats built of wood that so short a time ago 
was growing in the forests of Pennsylvania " ? 

The summer of 1814 found General Jacob 
Brown and General Winfield Scott bnsily en- 



176 



THE STORY OF THE EMPIRE STATE 



gaged iu a campaign on the Canadian shore of 
the Niagara Ki\er. They captured Fort Erie 
from the British, and won liard-t'ouiiht battles 
at Chippewa and Lundys Lane, in the hist of 
which General Scott was badly ^^•ouuded after 
havincc two horses shot under him. The brave 
work of these officers practically ended opera- 
tions in the western part of the State. 

In September the English tui'iied their at- 
tention to Lake Champlain. They sent seven 
thousand soldiers by land 
against our troops at 
Plattsburg, and at the 
same time an English 
s([uadron sailed up the So- 
rel Kiver and entered the 
lake, expecting to put an 
end to the American fleet 
which was there under 
Ca])tain Thomas INIacdon- 
ough. On the 1 1 th of Sej)- 
tember the double battle 
began. The British fleet 
attacked before the land forces. When Mac- 
donough's flagship was cleared for action, lie 
knelt on her deck and asked for God's help, 
then entered the battle. For over t^vo hours 
the fleets carried on so sharp a contest that 




THE WAR OF 1812 177 

both squadrons were nearly destroyed before 
the English were ready to surrender to Mac- 
donough and admit that he was the victor. 

As soon as the firing on the water began, 
the English land troops attacked the American 
force. Here, too, our men were getting the 
upper hand, and the British were just being 
driven back, when suddenly up dashed a rider 
on a foam-flecked horse, crying out the news 
that the British fleet was defeated. All along 
the American lines rose a hearty cheer. The 
enemy wavered. A retreat was sounded, and 
before many minutes the English troops were 
fleeing back to Canada, where they thought 
best to stay thereafter. 

While all this fighting was being done to 
secure our northern and western boundaries 
from invasion, England issued to the command- 
ers of her war-ships on the Atlantic an order to 
"destroy the seaport towns and desolate the 
country." Many villages along the coast of New 
England were laid waste. New York city be- 
came alarmed for fear that she, too, might be 
attacked. Fortifications must be put up at 
once ; but how, and by whom ? Mayor DeWitt 
Clinton appealed to the patriotism of the citi- 
zens, asking them to help in fortifying the town. 
So generously and promptly did the people 



178 THE STORY OF THE EMPIRE STATE 

respond, that w itliiii four days three tlioiisaiid 
persons were working with euthiisiasm. Schools 
were dismissed, and pu2>ils and teachers alike set 
out to do their part. Doctors, lawyers, ministers, 
and men of every trade in the city took their turn. 
In a very short time New York \\ as ready for 
the expected fleet, which never appeared. 

Early in 1815 came the news that peace had 
been made with England. Although the treaty 
contained no promise that England would not in- 
terfere with our sailors, she had learned a lesson, 
and never ascain were American merchant vessels 
searched by British officei's in time of peace. 

Once more New York counted the cost of 
war, and again she found that it had been great. 
Many men liad been lost, much money had 
been s[)ent. The northern frontier was deso- 
lated, and the people of that district wei'e pov- 
erty-stricken. Still the enemy liad been kept 
from sju'eading disaster throughout the State; 
the Indian war-whoop and seal ping-knife had 
not carried terror to the outlying settlements, 
and New York city had been spared from attack. 

Shi})s could now come and go unmolested. 
Again America had won from England, and 
every New Yorker liad cause for added j^ride 
in his State from the way in whicli she had ful- 
filled her pai-t in the War of 181 1\ 



CHAPTER XXII 

THE EKIE CANAL 

Great crowds were gatliered on Buffalo's 
lake shore on the morning of October 26, 1825. 
All was excitement. Expectation was seen in 
every face. Suddenly there was a rush of water 
and cheer after cheer rang out on the air. A 
o-reat cannon boomed forth. When its sound 
had died away another was heard in the distance 
almost like the echo of the first. Then a third 
and fourth and fifth repeated the message from 
the cannon at Buffalo. All along the Mohawk 
Valley and down the Hudson cannon answered 
cannon, until one hour and twenty minutes 
after the news left Buffalo the last cannon 
was saying to the people of New York city : 
"Tlie great Erie Canal is completed, and even 
now the waters of Lake Erie are hurrying 
along its course to join the sea." 

For a very long: time DeWitt Clinton had 
been earnestly at work trying to make the peo- 
ple of New York State understand what the 

13 179 



180 THE STORY OP THE EMPIRE STATE 

great canal would do for them ; that it would 
connect the uiarkets of the West with New York 
city, would make travel easier, and bring added 
prosperity to tlie State. 

Finally he succeeded in obtaining a vote 
favorable to the canal, and that very year the 
work was begun. On the 4th of July, ibl7, 
the first spadeful of dirt was dug at Rome. 
Even after the State had given its consent there 
were many who could not or would not see that 
any good was to come fi'om the canal. They 
called it ''Clinton's ditch,'' or "the big ditch." 
Still Clinton persevered, s])ent his energy, and 
risked all he had, even to the loss of his friends, 
in his determination to see the canal finished. 

lie had triumphed ! And when the waters 
of Lake Erie were let into " Clinton's ditch " he 
was there to take })art in the rejoicing. As 
soon as the canal was tilled, a greater procession 
than our State had ever seen set out from 
Buffalo. First came the barge Seneca Chief 
towed by four powerful gray horses, carrying- 
Clinton and several distinguished friends. Then 
followed a flotilla of canal-boats all gaily dec- 
orated for their initial trip to New York. (Jne 
boat was called Noah's Ark and had as pas- 
sengers a bear, two fawns, two eagles, and two 
Indians. On went the stately procession, wel- 



THE ERIE CANAL 181 

corned by cheering crowds at each town and 
hamlet in its route. Albany was the eastern 
end of the canal, and there the travelers were met 
by a grand military procession, which escorted 
them to the Capitol, w^here services were held. 

From Albany to New York the flotilla was 
towed by steamboats. Groups of men, women, 
and children heartily greeted the procession 
all alons: the banks of the Hudson. On No- 
vember 4 New York was reached before dawn, 
but not before the people of the city were astir 
making ready for their honored guests. Bells 
were rung, cannons fired, and an endless number 
of flags floated over the city. The new steamer 
Washington, coming out to meet the Seneca 
Chief, signaled the query, '* Where are you 
from, and what is your destination ? " 

"From Lake Erie, and bound for Sandy 
Hook," answered the Seneca Chief. 

Before long the water was dotted with boats 
of every description then in use. A procession 
was again formed and headed for the sea. Once 
past the Narrows, the boats made a great circle. 
Then Clinton lifted a keg of Lake Erie water, 
brought all the way from Buffalo on the Seneca 
Chief, and poured it into the sea to signify the 
uniting of the Great Lakes with the Atlantic 
Ocean. 



182 THE STOKY OF TUE EMPIRE STATE 

Meanwhile tlirouo:h the streets of New York 
city paraded a great procession, composed of rep- 
resentatives of every class and trade of which 
the city could boast. There \vas the Fire Depart- 
ment drawing the engines ^\ hich had displaced 
the leather buckets of early New York. The 
shipbuildei's were there with two untiuished 
boats drawn by four horses. The printers had 
a press which, as it went along in its cart, 
printed for distribution copies of 

" 'Tis done ! 'Tis done ! Tliu mighty cliaiii 
Which joius bright Eric to tlie Main 
For ages shall perpetuate 
The glory of our native State." 

Then came the skinners, the weavers, and the 
hatters, to say nothing of the hiwyers, the doc- 
tors, and all the societies of the city. It was 
trulv a vast procession in honoi' of Clinton's 
success. 

Three days later a great })all closed the cele- 
bration of New York's grandest achievement 
in the wd\ of ])rogress. The canal had been 
built by New ^'ork State alone with no help 
from the nation. It was by far the most ex- 
tensive pul)lic work ever undertaken in this 
country up to that time, and from the day the 
Erie Canal was completed, New York has had 
just claim to the title of the Empire State, 



CHAPTER XXIII 

THE CrVIL WAR 

The Fourth of July was made a day of 
national rejoicing by the adoption of the Dec- 
laration of Independence on that date in the 
year 1776. In 1827 an event took place in 
New York on July 4 which should make 
every New Yorker feel that he has a double 
reason to celebrate that glorious day. On the 
night of the third, ten thousand slaves slept in 
our State. They awoke on the morning of the 
fourth free men, having been made so by the 
passing of a law which proclaimed the end of 
slavery in New York State on and after Inde- 
pendence Day, 1827. 

Other Northern States had already taken 
this step, but in the South slavery still con- 
tinued. At the time New York became a free 
State the slave question was uppermost in poli- 
tics. Many and very heated discussions were 
held in Congress over the admission to the 
Union of slave tenitory as new States. Every 

183 



184 THE STORY OF TUE EMPIRE STATE 

mail tliroiiu'hoiit tlie couiitry Lad his opinions 
for or au'aiust the slave system, and his o])iiiions 
did not always agree with those of his State. 

In the free States some fe^v still ui)hehl 
slavery, while, fortunately for the poor 1)hicks, 
an occasional Southerner was in sympathy with 
their cause. Thanks to these last, a means of 
escape was opened to those slaves who could 
once get away from under their masters' eyes. 
The plan of the slave sympathizers was known 
as the "Underground Railroad.'' This raih-oad 
had stations and conductors, but no rails and 
no cars. When a slave succeeded in creeping 
away from his master's home, he \\ ent as fast as 
possible to the nearest station of the Under- 
ground Railroad, ^vhieh \vas no other than the 
house of some friend of the negroes. Here he 
was gladly received and carefully directed how 
to find his way to the next station farther north. 
He was given a letter to the conductor of that 
station, who was sure to be able and willing to 
pass him on with another letter to another sta- 
tion. And so he would work his way through 
the slave States into the fi*ee States, and through 
the free States into Canada and out of slaxery. 

There were a good many of these stations 
in our State. At any hour of day or night the 
station conductors were roused to welcome the 



THE CIVIL WAR 185 

anxious travelers. Occasionally tlie fear of 
pursuit would be lost by the time an escaped 
slave reached New York, and he was content 
to find work and take up life anew in the Em- 
pire State. 

The successful escape of certain of their 
slaves only added still more to the bittei' feeling 
which the men of the South felt toward the 
Northern States. In the hope of remedying the 
trouble, Congress passed, in 1850, the Fugitive 
Slave Law. The law allowed any person wdio 
claimed to be the owner of an escaped slave to 
apply to any court oi record in his State, prove 
his ownership, describe the slave, and obtain a 
record of his claim. All the other States were 
obliged to receive this record as conclusive evi- 
dence that the slave answering the description 
was rightfully the property of the claimant and 
must be given up to his owner. A fine of 
one thousand dollars must be paid by any 
marshal who failed to arrest such a slave, or by 
any one who hid him or helped him to escape. 
The citizens of New York received the law 
with contempt. Meetings were held, defiant 
speeches were made, and men resolved, regard- 
less of consequences, to protect the escaped 
slaves who had come to New York. They did. 
The Underground Railroad still carried pas- 



186 THE STORY OP TUE EMPIRE STATE 

sengers to freedom, and occasionally a recap- 
tui'ed slave was rescued from those who had 
talcen him, and quietly sent away into Canada, 

It is easy to imagine that such a course on 
the part of New York juid other Northern States 
only tended to increase Southei-n discontent. 
Soon came another cause of disagreement. 
AVhen Missouri asked to join the Union, the 
South had insisted that it should ccmie in as a 
slave State. The North said it should not. In 
1821 the compromise was made by which ]\Iis- 
souri came in as a slave State, with the agree- 
ment tliat, in all the remaining lands west of 
the Mississip])i Kiver and north of the Mis- 
souri's southern boundary, slavery should be 
forever forbidden. 

Now, in 1854, an attempt was made to bring 
Kansas and Nebraska into the Union as possi- 
ble slave States, and the Missoui-i Compromise 
was repealed. A storm of indignation swept 
througlumt the North. The trou])le grew. New 
York wished for peace and the preservation of 
the Tnion at any price, but it soon became evi- 
dent that slave States and free States could not 
be united under one flag. The North held that 
slavery should nc^t extend into free territory, 
although it did not })ropose to disturb the slave 
States already existing. The South, however. 



THE CIVIL WAR 



18Y 



saw fit to accept the position of the North as au 
invasion of its rights, and the terrors of civil 
war threatened to destroy the young nation. 

In December, 1860, South Carolina seceded 
from the Union. Ten other slave States fol- 
lowed her lead. What course to pursue and 




Aliraliani Lii 



what would be the outcome ? These were the 
questions which faced Abraham Lincoln when, 
in March, 18G1, he became President of the 
United States. He had not long to wait for an 
answer. On April 14 came the news that Fort 



188 THE STORY OF THE EMPIRE STATE 

RuFiiter bad l)een attacked l)y a Southern force 
and liad been obliged to surrender. The very 
next day Lincoln issued a call for seventy-five 
thousand men to preserve the Union. 

The (juota of troops demanded from New 
York Avas thirteen thousand, but so great was 
her lo\ ally to lier country, and so hearty her 
desire to serve, that thirty tliousaiid men set 
out for the Soutli, and diii'ing the year thou- 
sands more poured into the recruiting stations. 
The women, too, did Avhat they could by col- 
lecting all possible comforts to sen<l to the 
soldiers at the front. Money was freely loaned 
and given to the Government. Flags appeared 
in each toAvn and city, and from many house- 
tops floated the Union's I'ed, white, and blue 
banner. For two years New York spared her- 
self no pains in the hope of final victory. 

However, the reports received from the 
fields of action were not very encouraging. 
Gradually a peace-party grew up, and discontent 
was whispered about. In 18(>3 came another 
call for men. The citizens felt that their State 
had done all in its po\vei'. Kecruits no longer 
volunteered in ])lenty, and many counties were 
nuaMc to furnish the desired nunilxT. Drafts 
were ordered. In July the drafting began in 
New York city. Two days later, rioters ap- 



THE CIVIL WAR 



189 



peared in the streets iDsisting tliat the drafts 
were unconstitutional. The drafting office was 
surrounded, the windows smashed, the inmates 
driven out, and the building fired. For three 
days the riots lasted. The police were power- 
less. Colored men and women were set upon, 
beaten, and even hanged, and the orphan asylum 




Cold comfort. 

for colored children was burned to the ground. 
Finally soldiers from Pennsylvania came to the 
help of the police and quiet was once more 
restored. A thousand persons had been killed. 
Two million dollars worth of property had been 
destroyed, and all with no gain. The draft was 



190 THE STORY OF THE EMPIRE STATE 

resumed, but this time under the protection of 
soldiers aud without further iuterfereuce. 

The year 1864 was au anxious one, but witli 
tlie beginning of 1865 the belief spread that war 
would soon end. Victory after victory crowned 
the efforts of the Northern army. In April 
came the loncr-looked-for news of the tinal sur- 
render of the South and the triumph of the 
Union. New York sohliers learned the tidings 
in the camps far away and tui'ned their thoughts 
toward home, and New York women at home 
heard that the war was at an end, and made 
ready to welcome the soldiers from the camps. 

In the midst of the rejoicing came a great 
grief. On Ajiril 1 5 Abraham Lincoln, the man 
who had freed the slaves l)y his Emanci])ation 
Proclamation, who had devoted himself heart 
and soul to the preservation of the Union, and 
w ho had won the love and respect of thousands, 
the President of the United States, was assassi- 
nated. The Union was saved, the hard-fought 
war was over, and yet the man who had done 
most toward bringing about the happy outcome 
had been shot by an assassin just as his work 
\vas crowned with success. Nowhere had 
Abraham Lincoln found more stanch support, 
and nowhere was he more sincerely mourned, 
tlian in New York State. 



CHAPTER XXIV 

SOME DEVELOPMENTS DURING THE NINETEENTH 
CENTURY 

When our nation first claimed a place on 
the list of the world's rejDublics, the United 
States of America comprised only thirteen 
States along the Atlantic coast. At once en- 
terprising, hard-working men began pushing 
theu' way farther and farther west, laying out 
towns, building up cities, and sending back to 
those in the East stories of the rich land they 
had found. From these western lands new 
States were constantly formed and were 
adopted into the Union. So rapidly did the 
nation grow that, when almost the original 
number of States rebelled and declared war 
against the Government, there were still twenty- 
three left to stand by that body and help force 
the seceding States back to their allegiance. 
And this growth and development did not 
cease with the civil war, but is still going on 
and on until there is now no nation in the 

191 



192 THE STORY OK TlIK EMPUiE STATE 

world that does not kuow and respect the 
power of the Luited States of America. 

As the couutiy grew, the States developed, 
aud foremost of them all New York stands, 
and has stood for three-quarters of a century. 

These seventy-five years have seen great 
cliauges. They go back to the completion of 
the Erie Canal and the beginning of the end 
of stage-coach travel. From the main canal 
branches were built extending both north and 
south. Soon travel by these waterw ays l)ecame 
the approved method of getting a])out. Passen- 
ger-boats or ])ackets ran back and forth across 
the State. Each packet contained a dining- 
room and sleeping-bertlis, which were quite 
essential, as the boat's rate of speed was so 
uncertain that one could never tell just how 
far on his journey night would find him. The 
packets were drawn by three or four horses, or 
mules, as are the canal-boats of to-day. It was 
claimed they traveled five miles an hour, but a 
saying, "A cent and a half a mile, a mile and a 
half an hour," comes down from that time, 
suggesting that it would not have been wise to 
divide the num])er of miles to be traveled by 
five and then plan accordingly. 

The year 1831 is the date of the first rail- 
road in the State. It was one of the lii'st ])as- 



SOME NINETEENTH-CENTURY DEVELOPMENTS 193 



seiiger railroads in the country. The road was 
constructed of wooden rails, and covered a dis- 
tance of seventeen miles between Albany and 
Schenectady. The locomotives were rude ma- 



noSTON XfiD WORCESTER RAIL ROAD.^ 

I 




THG Passenger Cars will continue to run daily frorn ihe 
Drpol near Washington sireet, to Newion.alG and 
10 o'clock, A.M. and pt 3i o'clock, P. Rl. and 

Returnmg. leave Newion ai 7 and a quancr pasi 1 1, A.M. 
and a quarter before 5. P.M. 

Tickets Tor the passage either way may be had at the 
Tichci Office, No. on, Washington sireet •, price 3ii cents 
each ;«iid lor the return passage, of the Master of the Cari, 
Newton. 

By order ofthe President and Directors. 

a 29 cpislf F. A WILLIAMS, Clerk. 



First pas,senger train in America. 

chines. Their greatest speed was fifteen miles 
an hour. As it was impossible for them to 
climb a hill worthy of the name, every such 
elevation had to be gone round. A steep 
grade at Albany was managed by taking off 
the locomotive and pulling the cars to the top 
of the hill by means of a rope and a stationary 
engine. Here was the little beginning of the 
complete network of railroads which cross and 
recross the State, and from the awkward train 



194 



THE STOKY OK THE EMPIRE STATE 




of 1831 has developed the Empire State Ex- 
press, which rushes daily over the four hundred 
and forty miles between New York and Buffalo 
in foui- hundred and ninety-five minutes. 

The introduction of steam as a motive power 
le<l to the building of factories for making by ma- 
chinery many 
articles which, 
up to that time, 
had been made 
by hand or had 
been imported. 
Towns grew up 
aliout the fac- 

the foundations 
for our manufacturing cities where now are 
made nearly all the devices of mechanism. 

During the earl>^ years of the nineteenth 
century a condition of affairs existed whicli 
made life pretty hard for New York's poorer 
citizens. Once let a man get into debt, even 
for a very small amount, and, no matter 
whether the cause was illness, loss of ^\'ork, or 
idleness, he was seized and carried to the 
debtors' prison. Here his fate was ^vorse than 
if his crime had been the blackest of sins. 
The State fed and clothed her murderers, 



SOME NINETEENTH-CENTURY DEVELOPMENTS 195 

thieves, and forgers while they awaited trial. 
The care of the debtors' prison ^ya8 no one's 
duty. One room was made to hold all it could 
contain, which was many, as there were no 
chairs, no beds, nothing but human beings to 
take up the sj^ace. If a man's friends or some 
charitable society brought him food, all well 
and good ; if not, he went without until his 
debt ^vas paid, his creditor released him, or he 
died of starvation. Humane societies looked 
into the matter, and so earnestly did they 
work to bring about a reform that their efforts 
were successful. In 1831 New York passed 
a bill putting an end to imprisonment for 
debt. 

About the same time there were other indi- 
cations that New York meant to care for her 
unfortunates. State prisons were built at 
Sing Sing and Auburn to replace the old, over- 
crowded ones; the prisoners were given work 
and employment ; and asylums for the blind, 
dumb, and insane grew in number. 

Two great misfortunes befell New York 
city before the middle of the century. In one 
summer three thousand of her citizens died 
from cliolera. Then, on a certain cold Decem- 
ber night, a great lire broke out and threatened 
to sweep the city out of existence. It was kept 

14 



196 



THE STORY OF THE EMPIRE STATE 



from doino; so only by the blowinii; up with 
powder of whole blocks, and thus clearing 
spaces where the flames found nothing to feed 
upon. Both these disasters were attributed to 
the poor supply of water, and led to the build- 
ing of the great Croton Aqueduct, which reached 
forty miles to the Croton River, and brought to 
New York the gift of clear watei*. 

However, in spite of her misfortunes, the 
city's improvement was marked. Tall build - 




First street car built in Xom- York, 1831. 



ings replaced those of two or three stories. An 
omnibus line was made necessary in order to 
carry people the length of the city. This cheap 
way of travel proved a great success, and sug- 
gested the running of the first horse-car line in 
America. Oil lamps gave way to gas, altliough 
for a while many feai'ed that the whole of 



SOME NINETEENTH-CENTURY DEVELOPMENTS 197 

Manhattan Island would be blown up by this 
strange, new discovery. 

To-day horse-cars are disappearing ; gas has 
ceased to be a wonder ; and electricity lights the 
streets, runs the cars, 
and keeps the New 
York city of the twen- 
tieth century in con- 
stant touch with the 
entire world. 

The Empire State 
has 2:ood reason to feel 
an individual pride in 
both the telegraph and 
cable, as they are the 
product of New York men. Samuel F. B. 
Morse, by his inventive genius, first gave to our 





Keproduftidii of the first tclcirraphic message sent by the Morse 
system, now preserved at Harvard College. 

country that means of rapid communication 
which makes New York and California seem 
almost neighbors. To Cyrus W. Field is due 




w\ 




Jluract; (Jreuk'V. 



SOME NINETEENTH-CENTURY DEVELOPMENTS 199 



the great Atlantic cal)le wliicli binds America 
to the Old World. 

With these Uvo men stand many others who, 
in different lines of work, liave by their suc- 
cesses helped to make 
New York what she 
is. There was Peter 
Cooper, who worked 
earnestly for years 
eratherino; tosrether a 
fortune, which he used 
for the buildino; of an 
institution for the in- 
dustrial classes, where 
thousands have been 
educated and taught 
to make practical use 
of science and art. This school he gave to 
the State. Horace Grreeley devoted his life- 
time to raising the standard of newspaper 
work. Washington Irving and James Feni- 
more Cooper, by their interesting stories, have 
made the early Dutch settlers and the wild 
life of the New Yoi-k State Indians live for- 
ever. Then there was Henry Ward Beecher, 
the great clergyman ; Martin Van Buren, the 
first New Yorker to act as President of the 
United States ; and a lono; list of those who 




200 THE STORY OF THE E:\IP1KE STATE 



^ 



■^^-^ J^^-^J^^. 



1 




C'(>o|M'r Inini: and I'clrr ('(mpcr's slatiu\ 



served faithfully and well in the public life of 
their State. 

New York has heeu successful in many 
ways, she has \voii honor and renown anion"; 
her sister States, and yet chief of all hei- i-icli 
possessions must l)e placed the meiiioi-y of lu-r 
ci:reat and o:<><>d men. 



CHAPTER XXY 

THE SPANISH WAE 

The war of the Revolution was a hard fight 
to free America from English rule. The Civil 
War grew out of the opposition to the slave 
system of our country and resulted in the free- 
ing of the slaves. New York entered earnestly 
into both these wars, and twice shared in the 
glory and honor of victory. In 1898 she was 
once more called upon to send her soldiers to 
fight against oppression. 

When the wonders of the great Western 
Continent first became known to European na- 
tions, Spain was the leading military power in 
the world. Her sailors claimed in her name, 
and raised her flag over, vast tracts of land 
west of the Mississippi and in Central and 
South America. The islands of the West In- 
dies also were hers by right of discovery, and 
here, after all her American colonies had thrown 
off her tyrannical yoke, she ruled with unre- 
lenting severity. 

201 



202 



THE STORY OF THE EMPIRE STATE 



lu 1895 Cuba rebelled for the second time. 
To stamp out the insurrection Sjiain sent a 
great army under a general who, for two years, 
carried on the war in a most inhuman way. 
Then the United States became indignant and 
sent a message to Spain, saying that her cruel 
treatment of the Cubans must stop. Spain re- 
plied by promising tliat matters would soon be 
bettered. Not only did she fail to keep this 
promise, l^ut before many months all America 
was horrified l)y \vhat proved to be a i)iece of 
S2)anish handiwork. 

On February 15, 1898, the American battle- 
ship Maine, under the command of Captain 




The Maine. 



Sigsbee, of New York, was quietly riding at 
anchor in Havana harbor, when suddenly a 



THE SPANISH WAR 203 

submarine mine exploded and the great ship 
was blown into a tangled mass of iron. Two 
officers and two hundred and sixty-four United 
States sailors were killed. 

Not only every New Yorker, but every 
American was aroused. Once assured that the 



The wreck of the Maine. 



explosion was not to be accounted for by any 
motive other than Spanish hatred, it was use- 
less for even the President to talk of ]:»eace. 
The I'ule of Spain must come to an end on this 
side of the Atlantic, and the American people 
proposed to help Cuba drive out the tyrant. 

The war was short. Dewey's great naval 
victory at Manila, the brave and plucky work 
of American soldiers in Cuba, and the crushing 
defeat of the Sj^anish battle-ships off the Bay of 
Santiago soon convinced Spain that her power 



204 THE STORY OF THE EMPIRE STATE 

was bi'okeu. Cuba ^^as surreudered. Not loug 
after, Porto Rico welcomed the Americau troops 
and tlie end of Spanish rule. In August hos- 
tilities ceased, and on December 10, 1808, the 
formal peace protocol was signed. 

New York had loyally upheld President 
McKiuley in his war })olicy ; had sent her men 
to swell the army and navy militia, and to add 
their names to the long list of gallant com- 
manders who serv^ed in the war for Cuban 
independence. 

In tlie fall of 1899 Admiral Dewey returned 
to America from the Philii)pines. His flagship 
sailed into New Yoi'k hai'bor. Gorgeously 
decorated ships went out to meet him, and on 
sea and shore he was welcomed by the grandest 
patriotic display ever seen in America, New 
York had made ready for her country's hero. 



CHAPTER XXYI 

IN CONCLUSION 

Tins is the story of New York. On the 
west are two inland lakes, and between them 
forever roars and tumbles the never-ending, 
measureless, wT)nderful Falls of Niagara. To 
the east the broad, glistening Hudson peace- 
fully follows its course to the sea. Between, 
the wooded hills and shadowy forests are still, 
except for the song of birds, the cry of some 
prowling animal, or the whoop of an Indian. 
Scattered groups of Indian houses form the 
only break in the woodland green. Now and 
then through the trees noiselessly and swiftly 
glides a hunter with his bow and arrow. 
Little bark canoes skim over the waters of the 
many streams. At night the moon looks down 
on a great, crackling fire, surrounded by howl- 
ing, dancing savages, or sees a party of warriors 
in single file creeping along an Indian trail. It 
is the year 1600, and we are in the land of the 
People of the Long House. 

205 



206 THE STORY OP THE EMriRE STATE 

One hundred years later the valley of the 
Hudson is dotted with clusters of gaily-colored 
little Dutch homes. Plere and there the manor- 
house of some lordly patroon overlooks the 
river. On every side Dutch windmills lazily 
wave their great arms. The white sails of an 
occasional boat fleck the long, blue stretch of 
water. Sturdy Dutch and English farmers 
gather the crops which the rich earth has given 
them. Busy housewives work about the tidy 
homes, and plan how their children shall become 
merchants in the growing town at the mouth of 
the river. And peace reigns in the King of 
England's colony, New York. 

Another hundred years, and lumbering stage- 
coaches slowly make their way over uneven 
roads, carrying passengers from the capital 
city to New York, or from some town un- 
dreamed of fifteen years before, to a village of 
those days no^v fast becoming a city of impor- 
tance. Not oidy along the Hudson has Civiliza- 
tion found her way. She has wandered through 
the Mohaw k and Genesee Valleys, leaving in 
each footprint a future to\vnship. Way out on 
the shore of Lake Erie the fur traders have 
built a storehouse. And along the southern 
banks of the St. LawTence and on the shores 
of Lake Champlain log cabins mark the arrival 



IN CONCLUSION 207 

of" settlers. Industry rules supreme, and over 
all tlie index-finger of Time still points toward 
progress. New York lias thrown olf England's 
yoke and is free. 

The dawn of the twentieth century sees a 
never-to-be-forgotten sight in Buffalo, the Queen 
City of the Lakes. For many months a busy 
army of men have been at work, gathering to- 
gether the products of the American continents 
and planning and producing grounds and build- 
ings worthy to be the mammoth show-case of 
such treasures. On May 1, 1901, their work is 
done, and the blight sunshine of a spring day 
rests on every object, from the dainty flowers 
which add their bit of color, to the golden god- 
dess holding high above all her torch of liberty. 
The notes of Home, Sweet Home float out on 
the air, and up from their cages rise three 
thousand carrier-pigeons. They circle round 
the brilliant domes of the beautiful buildings, 
and then dart off in every direction, bearing 
home the message : " The Pan-American is com- 
plete. To you and to all the world I bring a 
hearty invitation from the Empire State." 



INDEX 



AlbaDy, 17, 22, 45, 66, 76, 83, 157, 

159, 181. 
Alden, Colonel, 132. 
Algonquins, 2, 12. 
Allen, Etlian, 103. 
Andre, John, 140. 

capture of, 143. 

death of, 146. 
Aiidros, Major Edmund, Governor 
of New York, 55. 

Governor of United Province, 59. 
Anti-Leislerians, 60. 
Antislavery sentiments, 183. 
Arnold, Benedict, at Quebec, 106. 

at Fort Stanwix, 126. 

at Saratoga, 128. 

and Andr^, 140. 

life in Philadelphia, 138. 

relieved of command, 128. 

treason of, 140. 

death of, 146. 
Assembly, colonial, 56, 58, 63, 76, 

96, 101. 
Atotarho, 5. 

Beecher, Henry Ward, 199. 
Bemis Heights, American encamp- 
ment, 127. 
attack on, 128. 
Bennington, attack on, 122. 
Boston port bill, 100. 
Boston tea party, 99. 



Braddock, General, 76. 

Bradstreet, Captain, 77. 

Brant, Joseph, 130. 

British army in New York, 115, 140, 

148, 151. 
British prisons, 151. 
Brooklyn Heights, attack on, 112. 
Brown, General, 175. 
Butfalo, 179, 207. 
Burgoyne, General, advance, 120. 

plan of campaign, 118. 

surrender, 129. 
Burr, Aaron, duel with Hamilton, 
167. 

life, 168. 

death, 169. 
Butler, Walter, 130. 

Canadian campaign of Revolution, 
107. 

Canajoharie, 157. 

Canals. 179, 192. 

Capital of State, 154-162. 

Catskill, 16. 

CayugaS, 1. 

Centennial of Washington's inaugu- 
ration, 155. 

Cham plain, 12. 

Champlain, Lake, 12, 176. 

Cherry Valley, massacre, 132. 

Civil War, 183. 

Clermont, the, 163. 

309 



210 



THE STORY OF THE EMPIRE STATE 



Clinton, l)e Witt, Mayor, 177. 

and Erie Canal, 179. 
"Clinton's Ditch," 180. 
Clinton, Sir llunry, 1:^7, 134,140, 

148. 
Colnian, John, 15. 
Colonial Congress, 1754, 7(3. 
Colonial customs, '/'J, 63, 82. 
Colonial privileges, 28, 39, 50, 63. 
Commerce, trade, 21, 45, 68, 8b, 'J3, 

96, 151, 157, 162. 
Committees of correspondence, 91. 
Consolers of sick, 24. 
Continental Congress, 1U4, 107. 

first, 1774, 100. 

power at close of Kevolutioii, 154. 
Cooper, James Fenimore, 199. 
Cooper Institute, 199. 
Cooper, Peter, 199. 
Cornwallis, 148. 

surrender of, 149. 
Coronation of William and Mary, 

59. 
Counties, New York divided into, 

58. 
Counting the cost of war, 13, 48, 54, 

79,129, 151, 178. 
Cowboys, 143. 
Croton aqueduct, 196. 
Crown Point, 103. 
Cuba, 202. 

Declaration of lndep('ndence signed, 
107. 

reception in Mew York, 108. 
Declaration of rights, 91. 
Defense of New York in Kevolu- 
tion, 106. , 

in War of 1812, 177. 
Delaware, 49. 
Dewey, Admiral, 203-204. 
Disbanding the army, 151. 
Dongan charter granted, 57. 

revoked, 58. 



Dongan, Thomas, 56. 

Draft riots, 188. 

Dutch and English, 43, 48. 

Dutch and Iroquois, 23. 

Dutch discovery of New York, 

14. 
Dutch fete days, 39. 
Dutch licet before New Y'ork, 47. 
Dutch government, 23, 25, 42. 
Dutcli purchase of Manhattan, 25. 
Dutch retake New Y'ork, 48. 
Dutcli surrender to English, 43. 
Dutch tolerance, 39. 
Dutch Wost India Company, 23,25, 

39. 

Edward, Fort, 120. 

Elnura, 133. 

Emancipation proclamation, 190. 

End of Dutch rule in America, 

48. 
English colonies, 49, 50. 
English revolution of 1688, 59. 
English surrender to Dutch, 48. 
Erie Canal, 179. 
Erie, Lake, battle of, 173. 
Erie, Pennsylvania, 173. 
Evacuation of New Y'ork city, 151. 
E.xpeditions against Indians, 133. 

Field, Cyrus W., 197. 
Final campaign of Kevolution, 148. 
Fire — great fire of 1835, 195. 
Fire-water, 17. 

First American victory of Revolu- 
tion, 103. 
First blood of Kevolution, 97. 
Five Nations,. 2, 12, 160. 
Flag, the, 125. 

Freedom of conscience, 39, 42, 57. 
Freedom of the press, 66. 
French and Indian war, 74. 
French and Iroquois, 12, 51. 
French claims, 51, 57. 



INDEX 



211 



French colonies, 12. 
French fortilications, 75, 78. 
French invasions, 12, 51. 
French missionaries, 51. 
Frontenac, Count, 52, 54. 
Frontenac, Fort, surrender of, 77. 
Fugitive slave law, 185. 
Fulton, Kobert, 163. 

Gardner's Island, 32, 68. 
Genesee Valley devastated, 134. 
George III, 88, 103, 105, 150. 
George, Fort, 173. 
Golden Hill, conflict of, 97. 
Great Butfalo, 8. 
Greeley, Horace, 199. 
Green Mountain Boys, 103. 

Hale, Nathan, 116. 
Half Moon, the, 14. 
Hamilton, Alexander, speaks at 
meeting in the fields, 100. 
duel with Aaron Burr, 167. 
death, 169. 
Herkimer, Nicholas, 123. 
Hessians, 105-117. 
Hiawatha, 1. 
Hopkins, Samuel, 47. 
Howe, General, 106, 109, 119, 127. 
Howe, Lord, 110, 114. 
Hudson, Henry, discovery of Hud- 
son River, 16. 
visit to Hudson Bay, 19. 
death, 20. 

Imprisonment for debt, 194. 
Inauguration of Washington, 154. 
Indian conflicts, 12, 25, 26. 
Indian customs, 5. 
Indian massacres, 51, 130. 
Indian reservations, 160. 
Iroquois Confederacy, 3, 160. 
Iroquois, the, 12, 51, 160. 
Irving, Washington, 199. 
15 



James, Duke of York, claims New 
Netherlands, 45, 49. 
grants charter and Assembly, 

56. 
becomes king, 58. 
James II crowned, 58. 

abdicated, 59. 
James, Major, 92. 
Jameson, Colonel, 144. 
Johnson, Sir William, 81, 106. 
July Fourth, 107, 183. 

Kidd, Captain, 67. 
Kingston, 127. 

Leisler, Jacob, 60. 
Leislerians, 60. 
Lexington, battle of, 102. 
Liberty pole, tlie, 94, 97. 
Lincoln, Abraham, 187, 190. 
Lincoln, General, 127. 
Livingston, Kobert R., 107. 
Long House, 3. 

Macdonough, Captain Thomas, 

176. 
Mails, 45, 159. 
Maine, the, 202. 

Manhattan, 14, 21, 24, 25, 29, 45. 
Manila, battle of, 203. 
Manning, Captain, 47, 55. 
Manufactories, 161, 195. 
McKinley, William, 204. 
Meeting in the fields, 1774, 100. 
Minuit, Peter, 25. 
Missouri Compromise, 186. 

repeal, 186. 
Mohawks, 1, 4, 23, 25. 
Mohegans, 25. 
Montcalm, General, 78. 
Montgomery, General, 106. 
Montreal, 54, 77, 106. 
Morse, Samuel F. B., 197. 
Murray, Lindley, 115. 



212 



THE STORY OF THE EMPIRE STATE 



National Constitution, 154. 

Navigation Acts, 89. 

Negro plot, 70. 

New Amsterdam, 45. 

New France, 12, 50. 

New Jersey, 50. 

New Netherlands, 23, 28, 43, 45. 

Newspapers, 65. 

New Sweden, 49. 

New York city, 22, 45, 85, 102, 

107, 151, 154, 162, 181, 188, 

196. 
Province of, 45, 152. 
New York State, 152, 150, 179, 

192. 
Niagara, Fort, 130. 
Non-importation agreement, 93, 96, 



Ohio Valley, 74. 
Oneidas, 1, 123. 
Onondagas, 1, 4. 133. 
Oriskany, battle of, 123. 
Oswego, 68,119. 

Pan-American, the, 207. 

Patroon estates, 84. 

Patroon system, 28, 84. 

Penn, William, 50. 

People of the Long House, 4, 22, 53, 

68, 80, 106, 100. 
Perry, Commodore Oliver Hazard, 

173. 
Pirates, 67. 

Plattsburg, battle of, 176. 
Population, 21, 23, 03, 162. 
Porto Rico, 204. 
Postal service, 45, 159. 
J'residential election, first, 154. 
Press, the, 65. 
Prisons, 151, 194. 
Punishments, 32. 
Putnam, General Israel, 115. 
Pygmies, 8. 



Quakers, 42, 50. 
Quartering Act, 96. 
Quebec, 12, 78, 106. 

Railroads, 192. 

Religious freedom, 39, 42, 57. 

Revolutionary War, 102. 

Roads, 150, 157. 

Rome, 80,180. 

Sacketts Harbor, attack on, 172. 

Sandy Hook, 14. 

Santiago, battle of, 203. 

Saratoga, 128. 

Scalp-l.K'k, 7. 

Schenectady, 53. 

Schoharie Valley, massacres in, 

131. 
Schuyler, General, 100, 121, 125. 
Scott, General, 176. 
Senecas, 1, 4. 
Shippen, Margaret, 139. 
Sigsbee, Captain, 202 
Skinners, the, 143. 
Slavery in New York, 39, 70, 183. 
Smith, Jo!5hua, 142. 
Sons of Liberty, 91, 97, 100. 
Sorel River, 12, 176. 
South Carolina, secession of, 187. 
Spanish War, the, 201. 
Springfield, attack on, 131. 
Stamp Act Congress, 91. 
Stamp Act, the, 90. 

repeal of, 94. 
Stanwi.x, Fort, siege of, 123. 
State Constitution, 153. 
Steamboat, the first, in New York, 

163. 
St. Leger, Colonel, 119. 
St. Leger\s campaign, 123. 
Stony Point, attack on, 134. 
Stuyvesant. Peter, 40. 
Sumter, Fort, attack on, 188. 
Syracuse, 133. 



INDEX 



213 



Taxation, 57, 63, 88, 95. 

Tea tax, 97. 

Ticonderoga, 103, 120. 

Torv party, 87, 106, 107, 119, 130. 

Trade, 21, 45, 68, 88, 93, 96, 151, 

157. 162. 
Travel, 29, 82, 102, 156, 163, 192, 196. 
Treaties— Tawasentlia, 23. 

Ryswick, 1697, 5-i. 

Paris, 1763, 80. 

Ghent, 1814, 178. 

with England, 1783, 151. 

with Spain, 1898, 204. 
Trenton, battle of, 117. 
Trial by jury, 57. 

" Underground railroad," 184. 
Utica, 80, 158. 

Van Buren, Martin, 199. 
\';m Rensselaer, 84. 
Virginia, 49, 69, 74, 149. 



Warof 1812, 171. 
Washington, Fort, 115. 
Washington, George, birth, 69. 
connnander-in-chief, 105, 106, 107, 

109, 115, 138, 145, 148. 
President, 154. 
resigns commission, 151. 
trip to banks of Ohio, 74. 
Wayne, Anthony, 134. 
West Point, attack on, 136, 140. 
West Point Military Academy, 

162. 
Whig party, 87. 
White Plains, 115. 
Wliitestown, 157. 
William, Prince of Orange, 59. 
Wolfe, General, 78. 
Writs of Assistance, 89. 

Yorktown, surrender at, 149. 

Zenger, John Peter, 65. 



THE END 



AN IMPORTANT HISTORICAL BOOK» 



The History of the Louisiana Pur- 
chase. 

By Dr. Jaimes K. Hosmer, Author of "A Short History 
of the Mississippi Valley," etc. With Illustrations and 
Maps. i2mo. Cloth, $1.20 net ; postage, 12 cents 
additional. 

The story that Dr. Hosmer tells of the acquisition of the western 
empire included in the Louisiana Purchase presents fresh and pictur- 
esque phases of a most important historical event of peculiar and 
timely interest, in view of the anniversary which comes next year. He 
pictures the vague and curious ideas of the Louisiana country held by 
most Americans one hundred years ago, and the objections to this 
form of expansion. He treats the changes in the ownership of the 
territory from France to Spain, and again to France, and he develops 
fully the purposes and acts of Jefferson and the American Commis- 
sioners in Paris. 

Of special importance from both the historical and personal points 
of view are the chapters which picture more fully and vividly than has 
been done before the leadmg part taken by Napoleon in bringing about 
the sale of Louisiana, and the relations between F^rance and America, 
which are shown to possess a historical importance that has not been 
appreciated. 

There has been no account of the Louisiana Purchase which is so 
popular and constant in its interest, and the authoritative character of 
the historian's work renders the volume indispensable for younger 
and older readers who wish to gain a thorough knowledge of the per- 
sonal elements and the historic significance of the acquisition of 
Louisiana. 

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A History of the United States Navy. (1775 
to 1902.) — New and revised edition. 

In three volumes, the new volume containing an Account of the Navy 
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In the new edition of \'ol. Ill, whicli is now ready for publication, the author brings 
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A History of American Privateers. 

Uniform with "A History of the United States Navy." One volume. 
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After several years of research the distinguished historian of American sea power 
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that the value ot prizes and cargoes taken by privateers in the Revolution was thrte 
times that of the prizes and cargoes taken by naval vessels, while in the War of 181 2 
we had 517 privateers and only 23 vessels in our navy. Mr. IMaclay's romantic tale is 
accompanied by reproductions of contemporary pictures, portraits, and documents, and 
also by illustrations by Mr. (George Gibbs. 

The Private Journal of William Maclay, 

United Slates Senator from I'cnnsylvania, 1769-1791. W"n\\ Portrait 
from Original .Miniature. Edited by EDGAR Stanton Maci.ay, A. M. 
Large 8vo. Cloth, $2. 25. 

During his two years in the Senate William Maclay kept a journal of his own in 
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A 1' 1' I. K T X A X I) CO M 1' A \ ^ . N K W ^' () R K. , 



McMASTER'S FIFTH VOLUME, 

History of the People of the United 
States. 
By Prof. John Bach McMaster. Vols. I,II,1IL 
IV, and V now ready. 8vo. Cloth, with MapSj 
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A WORK OF GREAT VALUE, 



The International Geography. 

By Seventy Authors, including Right Hon. James 
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Memoirs of Marshal Oudinot, 

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A French Volunteer of the War of Independence. 

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The Races of Europe. 

A Sociological Study. By William Z. Ripley, Ph. D., 
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n . A P I' L !•: T () N AND C O M P A N ^• , X V. W Y O K K . 



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The Earth's Beginning. 

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for general readers. 

An Atlas of Astronomy. 

By Sir Robert Stawell Ball, LL. D,, F. R. S., Lowndean Professor 
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The Story of the Sun. 

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The Sun. 

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Studies in Spectrum Analysis. 

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The Story of the Stars. 

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A STANDARD REFERENCE WORK. 



Appletons' Universal Cyclopaedia and 
Atlas. 

This is the only Cyclopaedia made in this country by a thoroughly 
organized body of scholars, writers, and litterateurs, each selected ior 
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m It treats more than yolooo subjects, including thirty thousand 
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ARRANGED ANALYTICALLY. This is a time-saver; it 
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THE ATLAS FEATURE. This work contains a map of 
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D. APPLETON AND COMPANY, NEW YORK. 



1902 



LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 



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